Newcastle United defender ruled out for eight matches as Lewis Hall separated from main squad

Newcastle United are back in the revamped UEFA Champions League this season.

Eddie Howe has made the difficult decision to axe one of the club's most experienced players due to the competition's 25-man squad rule.

The Magpies are set to face FC Barcelona (h), Paris Saint-Germain (a), Bayer Leverkusen (a), Benfica (h), Marseille (a), PSV Eindhoven (h), Athletic Club (h) and Union Saint-Gilloise (a) in this season's league phase.

Newcastle United axe dressing room leader from UEFA Champions League squad

Newcastle will be without defender Jamaal Lascelles for their eight league phase games, despite the former skipper returning from a lengthy injury.

Lascelles is yet to feature this season after rupturing his ACL over a year ago, with the decision made that he is now surplus to requirements for the competition. New signing Malick Thiaw has been included in the squad, as well as fellow centre-backs Sven Botman, Fabian Schär as well as emergency cover Emil Krafth, who is nominally a full-back.

Youngsters Lewis Hall and Lewis Miley are included in the club's 'B List' squad.

Per UEFA's regulations: "Each club is entitled to register an unlimited number of players on List B during the season. The list must be submitted by no later than 24.00 CET on the day before the match in question...A player may be registered on List B if he is born on or after 1 January, 2004."

UEFA rules state: "No club may have more than 25 players on List A during the season. As a minimum, eight places are reserved exclusively for 'locally trained players' and no club may have more than four 'association-trained players' listed in these eight places on List A.

"List A must specify the players who qualify as being 'locally trained', as well as whether they are 'club-trained' or 'association-trained.'"

Club-trained players are those who have spent three years, continuous or not, in the academy setup at Newcastle United between the ages of 15 and 21.

The term 'association-trained' is more commonly known as 'homegrown' and relates to players who were trained in England but not necessarily with the Magpies over the same period as detailed above.

Why are Miley and Hall in a separate squad list?

'List B' is a simple and flexible way for clubs to register young, homegrown players without using up a valuable spot on their main 25-man 'List A' squad.

Hall (2004) and Miley (2006) both meet the required criteria having been born after January 1, 2004.

Can Newcastle United change their Champions League squad this season?

The answer is yes. Simply put, and as stated by UEFA: "After the completion of the league phase and before the start of the knockout phase, a club may register a maximum of three new eligible players for the remaining matches in the current competition. Such registrations must be completed by 5 February 2026."

It is a situation that mirrors Chelsea in the UEFA Conference League last term, with Cole Palmer dropped from their initial squad before being reintroduced for their vital knockout stage games.