The incredible Carabao Cup celebrations will be a lifetime memory for all Newcastle United fans, but as Yasir Al-Rumayyan said: This is only the start.
Eddie Howe will refocus his Newcastle squad to push for Champions League qualification this season. Because of the Carabao Cup success, Newcastle are already in the Uefa Conference League for 2025/26.
Howe was expected to return to Europe this season and he has already achieved that goal while also ending a 70-year wait for silverware.
However, Newcastle will not settle for the Conference League with 10 games remaining to try and secure a top-five finish.
Newcastle United will struggle to avoid Uefa rule breach
Newcastle fans are well aware that the club have had to make sacrifices to comply with the Premier League Profit and Sustainability Rules.
Now back in Europe, they will have to comply with Uefa rules and the squad regulations in Europe are slightly unique.
As pointed out by The Athletic, each club competing in Uefa competition must have a minimum of eight ‘homegrown’ players. If a club fails to fill a ‘homegrown’ spot, they are docked a squad place, meaning they will have a much smaller squad to compete with.
A minimum of four of those homegrown players must be ‘club trained’, meaning they must have been registered with Newcastle for at least three years between the ages of 15 and 21.
After Newcastle were forced to sell Elliot Anderson in the summer, it leaves Sean Longstaff as the only homegrown player available for the 2025/26 campaign.
PIF must U-turn on Sean Longstaff transfer stance
It has been widely reported that Longstaff will likely leave Newcastle this summer after dropping down the pecking order in Howe’s squad.
Longstaff is open to a Newcastle exit and he has already started attracting interest from top-flight clubs.
Everton were linked with Longstaff over the January window and they could reignite their interest in the summer if the 27-year-old is still available.
However, PIF may be forced to make a U-turn and keep hold of Longstaff so that Newcastle don’t have a hugely restricted squad heading into European competitions next season.
Under the new European format, clubs are required to play even more games and some clubs such as Chelsea have even fielded an entirely separate squad in Europe. Newcastle are already light on depth and being forced to have a reduced squad will be a worry.
It could be a lifeline for Longstaff to stay at St James’ Park next season.
