Champions League qualification change which could help Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool

Premier League clubs could be set to be handed another route to Champions League qualification if planned rule changes are made. UEFA chief Aleksander Ceferin has revealed clubs who reach the semi-finals would qualify regardless of where they finish in their domestic leagues. He also hinted the move could protect teams as far back as the quarter-finals as he name-dropped Leicester City, who reached the quarter-finals the year after their Premier League triumph. The changes would hand a boost to Premier League clubs given the notorious difficulty in making the top four. Ceferin revealed further talks are planned for September as he told the Times: "We would like to protect teams like Ajax this year, or Monaco and Leicester City [who reached the quarter-finals] before. Ajax played the semi-finals this year and now they will have to sell all their players because they don't know if they will qualify for the Champions League next year. "I don't think we should protect too many clubs, because then it's too closed, but I think we have to protect some clubs. One idea is that those clubs who succeed at a certain stage of the competition can compete the following year too. But it is a discussion only. We have a meeting on September 11 to debate it with leagues and clubs."

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