Newcastle United could be set to benefit from a new change to the UEFA Champions League from 2024 onwards - but they'll need help from Manchester City and other Premier League heavyweights along the way.
UEFA have confirmed the number of clubs competing in the Champions League will increase from 32 to 36 in two years time. Teams that qualify for the tournament will be guaranteed at least eight games in a “Swiss league” system amid a shake up to the group stage.
There had been initial plans to award qualification based on a team’s coefficient, handing underachieving historic clubs a route into Europe's premier competition. Instead, two extra places will now go to the highest performing countries in UEFA competitions each season.
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If the rules were to be applied this season, the extra places would go to clubs from England and the Netherlands. In four of the last five seasons, and six of the last 10, England would have received one of the extra places.
With last season's Champions League final taking place between Chelsea and Manchester City, the 2019 spectacle featuring Liverpool and Tottenham, and the fact we were seconds away from another all English final this year - it looks likely the Premier League will scoop up an extra spot more often than not.
For Newcastle it is a timely bonus as they look to break up the so-called 'Big Six'. Success won't come overnight and finishing in the top four remains a long way off, especially after Sunday's hammering at Manchester City.
But for a club that in the coming seasons will be looking to emulate the likes of West Ham, Leicester and Wolves, Newcastle could find themselves battling it out with the likes of Tottenham and Arsenal for that fifth spot in the competition.
That of course means hoping other English sides continue to do well in the tournament. Maybe Erling Haaland joining City wasn't a bad thing, after all?
Qualifying for the 2024 showpiece remains highly unlikely. But for new arrivals like Bruno Guimaraes and Kieran Trippier, the end goal for the Magpies is disrupting the teams at the top of the Premier League.
Guimaraes recently shot for the stars as he unveiled his aim while playing for Newcastle. “We want to get into the top 6. Fight for the Europa League, maybe for the Champions League," he said.
"We know that it won’t be overnight that you will become a top 7, you have to prove it on a daily basis, in the championships, but we hope for the best. I hope we can form a great team, it will depend on the reinforcements, who will arrive, who will leave. I’m very optimistic, I hope we can fight for the Europa League, maybe Champions."
Newcastle co-owner Amanda Staveley has also pulled no punches when it comes to talking up the ambition of those at the top. “We want to see it get those trophies. At the top of the Premier League, in Europe," she said on the day of the takeover.
