Spurs handed Basle draw

Tottenham appeared to be handed the easiest draw in the quarter-finals of the Europa League after being paired with Swiss side Basle.

Chelsea face a long trip to take on Russian side Rubin Kazan while Newcastle will play Benfica from Portugal.

In the other quarter-final, Fenerbahce from Turkey will play Italian side Lazio.

Rubin Kazan will be tough opponents for Rafa Benitez's Chelsea team.

The Russian side have already knocked out two Spanish teams - holders Atletico Madrid in the last 32 and Levante on Thursday night, winning 2-0 after extra-time in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.

Rubin were also unbeaten in a tough group that included Inter Milan, and are particularly strong defensively, having conceded only three goals in 10 European matches.

Spurs' opponents Basle scraped into the quarter-finals after Russian side Zenit St Petersburg missed a late penalty.

Newcastle's opponents Benfica came into the Europa League knock-out stages after finishing third in a Champions League group including Celtic and Barcelona, during which they achieved a 0-0 draw at the Nou Camp.

Former Newcastle and Holland striker Patrick Kluivert, who carried out the draw for UEFA, said he believed an English side has a great chance of winning the competition.

Kluivert said: "There are three great teams from England - Chelsea, Tottenham and Newcastle - and for sure one of those can lift the trophy but there will be other teams eager to do so too so that can only be good for the competition."