NYON, Switzerland — Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool will meet in the Europa League quarterfinals in a match between Juergen Klopp’s former and current clubs.
Klopp spent seven years as Dortmund coach, helping the team win two German league titles and reach the Champions League final, before stepping down in 2015. He was hired by Liverpool in October.
"I am really happy to introduce my new team to Dortmund," Klopp said. "I am really happy to show the boys this wonderful stadium and a great city. It’s a story only football can write."
The teams were chosen to face each other in Friday’s draw, which also saw Sevilla — seeking a third straight Europa League title — pitted against Athletic Bilbao in an all-Spanish contest.
Sevilla has won the UEFA Cup-Europa League in four of the last 10 seasons.
Villarreal, the third Spanish team in the quarterfinals, will play Sparta Prague, while Braga will take on Shakhtar Donetsk.
The first legs will be played on April 7, with the second legs on April 14.
The profile of the Europa League has soared this season thanks to a number of attractive matchups in the last 16, including Liverpool vs. Manchester United and Dortmund vs. Tottenham.
Dortmund taking on Liverpool is another appealing match.
"Two of the biggest clubs in the world meet each other in the Europa League," Klopp said, "so everybody who thought a few months ago maybe it’s not that interesting a tournament, hopefully they’ve switched their minds in the last few weeks.
"I still have three season tickets (at Dortmund) but my son uses them and is very often in the stadium – when he’s not in Liverpool, of course – so I am looking forward to going there."
Dortmund director Michael Zorc said: "We are not going to be staging a romantic dinner. We want to go through and that’s going to be hard enough."