Arsenal and Liverpool will face each other for the first time in European competition after being drawn together in the quarterfinals of the Champions League on Friday. With four English clubs in the last eight, the most ever from one country, it was almost inevitable that two would meet as the names were drawn at UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. Manchester United faces Roma in a repeat of their clash at this stage last year while Chelsea's quest to win Europe's premier club competition for the first time will be tested by a clash with Turkish last-eight debutant Fenerbahce. Barcelona will have home advantage in the second leg after being drawn to play Germany's Schalke. With the semifinal draw also being made, the eight remaining clubs now know their prospective paths to the final to be played in Moscow. Liverpool could face Chelsea in the last four, having beaten it at that stage last year and in 2005. Manchester United and Barcelona are also on collision course in the semifinals. Premier League leader Arsenal, beaten in the final two years ago, will be at home in the first leg against five-time European champion. With a Premier League clash on April 5 the sides will meet three times in a week in fixtures that will define their respective seasons. Liverpool, finalist in two of the last three seasons, is struggling to cement fourth place in the league and the Champions League is its last chance of a trophy this season. “We had hoped to avoid the other (English) teams at this stage,” Liverpool's chief executive Rick Parry told Sky Sports News. “Unfortunately we play Arsenal in a league game in between so we'll be playing them three times in a week - but there we go.” Arsenal managing director Keith Edelman echoed his sentiments. “We would have preferred European competition - this is the Champions League,” he said. “But Liverpool are a great team.” Twice winner Manchester United and Roma have plenty of recent history in the competition. Roma will have painful memories of the 7-1 drubbing it suffered at Old Trafford last season after a first leg marred by crowd trouble had finished 1-1 in the Olympic Stadium. They met again in the groups stage of this season's competition, with United winning 1-0 at home and the match in Italy ending 1-1. Like last year Roma will be at home first. “They are a much better team than they were last season,” United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz told Sky Sports News, referring to the Italian club's home and away victories over Real Madrid in the last 16. Barcelona, which is likely to be without Argentine Lionel Messi for both legs of its quarterfinal, will have been relieved to avoid English opponents as it still has memories of recent defeats by Liverpool and Chelsea. Schalke, which qualified for the knockout stages despite picking up just eight points in their group, has never met Barcelona before and will need a strong performance at home in the first leg to stand a chance of upsetting the Catalans. Likewise Turkish champion Fenerbahce, coached by Brazilian great Zico, will aim to benefit from its fanatical home support in the first leg as it tackles Chelsea. It is also meeting for the first time in Europe. The quarterfinal first legs will be played on April 1-2 with the returns a week later. The semifinals start on April 22-23.UEFA Cup draw Favorite Bayern Munich will face Spanish club Getafe in the quarterfinals of the UEFA Cup. Friday's draw pitched the German heavyweights, four-time European champion, against a club enjoying its first taste of European competition. The outstanding tie of the round features PSV Eindhoven against Italian club Fiorentina. Both won penalty shoot-outs on Wednesday to reach the last eight. Germany's other representative Bayer Leverkusen face Zenit St. Petersburg while Rangers, the sole British club to survive, is up against Sporting Lisbon. Should both German clubs win they will meet in the semifinal. The first legs will be played on April 3 with the second legs a week later. __
