Arsenal Champions League permutations explained as automatic spot eyed and opponents explained

Arsenal will travel to Spanish side Girona on Wednesday night to take part in their final Champions League league phase fixture in the competition's new-fangled format.

Mikel Arteta's side are confirmed to snag an automatic qualification spot in the 36-club standings, which would see them fast-tracked to the round of 16.

The Gunners currently sit in third position, behind Barcelona and Liverpool, with an all-but-guaranteed top-eight finish with a single point needed to confirm. The match will also serve as a curtain call on host Girona's debut Champions League campaign, with the club already resigned to leaving the competition.

UEFA hoped the updated format for Europe's flagship tournament would deliver more competitive contests between the continent's super clubs - and it looks set to do so. Previously, the top two teams from eight groups of four would advance to the knockout rounds, with group toppers being seeded to face second place. This format would often see more established clubs skate through the qualification stage and earn a favourable draw in the early knockout stages. However, even if Arsenal were to be fast-tracked to the last 16, the side could still face stiff opposition as ninth to 26th spots battle in an extra play-off round.

Who would Arsenal face as it stands?

If the standings were to remain unchanged after the final whistle on Wednesday night, Arsenal would finish third.

This year, the teams finishing in either third or fourth spots will face the winners of the knockout play-off ties between either 19th v 20th or 13th v 14th.

As it stands, this would see Arsenal face a selection of PSV, Club Brugge, Brest or Borussia Dortmund.

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Who could Arsenal face based on a supercomputer prediction?

There are many permutations to the updated ruleset in Europe, adding to the drama. According to the Football Rankings' supercomputer, based on predicting the results of the final round of fixtures, Arsenal maintain their third position, but the four teams most likely to face the Gunners are Sporting Lisbon, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus.

Two of the four European heavyweights will have to do battle themselves in a play-off to book their spot against the Gunners.

What other possible opponents could Arsenal face?

With the entire play-off bracket still up in the air, Arsenal stand to potentially face a litany of Europe's elite in the last 16. Manchester City, in 25th place, will play Club Brugge, hoping to leapfrog them in the table and snatch a play-off spot at the last chance of asking.

Aforementioned Real Madrid, PSG and Juventus all occupy a spot outside the top eight, as do heavyweights Bayern Munich and fellow Premier League side Aston Villa, who earned a dramatic 2-2 draw at the Emirates earlier this month.

All 36 clubs will kick-off across 18 games at 8pm in a bumper close to the Champions League opening phase.