McKennie, Tillman among USMNT players to learn UCL playoff matchups

The UEFA Champions League playoff round matchups are set. 

Five U.S. men’s national team players learned their opponents for February’s two-legged playoff series, which will begin February 17-18.

Weston McKennie and Juventus will meet Turkish club Galatasaray in the playoff round.  McKennie and the Bianconeri finished 13th in the league phase standings. 

Johnny Cardoso and Atletico Madrid square off with Belgian giants Club Brugge. Diego Simeone’s men fell to Norwegian club Bodo/Glimt in their final league phase match on Wednesday.

Folarin Balogun and AS Monaco will meet Ligue 1 rivals Paris Saint-Germain. Monaco has already defeated PSG once this season, earning a 1-0 league win back in November.

Yunus Musah and Atalanta take on Bundesliga outfit Borussia Dortmund. It will mark the first head-to-head meeting between the two clubs since 2018. 

Malik Tillman and Bayer Leverkusen will take on Greek side Olympiakos. Olympiakos defeated Leverkusen 2-0 in league phase play back on January 20. 

The winners will advance to the Round of 16 later this spring. 

The UEFA Europa League playoff series were also decided on Friday.

Auston Trusty and Celtic will meet Bundesliga side Stuttgart in the playoff round. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two clubs.

Erik Palmer-Brown and Panathinaikos will take on Viktoria Plzen. The two clubs played out a 0-0 draw in Greece last December during the league phase.