Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas has declared that destiny will pit his current side against former club Chelsea in the Europa League knockout stages.
Chelsea dropped into the competition this week after being eliminated from the Champions League in the group stages.
Spurs ensured safe passage from their group on Thursday with a 3-1 victory over Panathinaikos at White Hart Lane.
Villas-Boas believes that Chelsea's participation devalues the tournament but admitted that he would relish the prospect of meeting them in the last 16.
He told The Mirror: "In the situation as it stands, teams fail in the Champions League and are promoted to the Europa League, which is a massive bonus. You can't give a bonus to teams that have failed.
"I think it's extremely unfair. This is not something which I've just invented yesterday, it's something I said in UEFA meetings when I was at Porto.
"If we cross, it is going to be two magnificent games, for sure. Sometimes it's destiny."
The London rivals cannot be paired together in next week's draw for the last 32 but are eligible for a capital clash in the latter stages of the competition.
Liam Power
