WHEN Amanda Staveley completed her Saudi Arabia-backed takeover of Newcastle United in the autumn of 2021, she immediately set her sights on emulating, and eventually overtaking, Manchester City.

“Of course, we have the same ambitions as Manchester City in terms of trophies,” said a bullish Staveley. “Do we want to win the Premier League within five to ten years? Yes. This takeover is hugely transformative, and we want to see trophies.” Well, two-and-a-half years on, and the silverware is hardly gleaming.

There are multiple reasons why Newcastle have found it extremely difficult to attain a position within the established elite, despite their somewhat spurious tag of being the ‘richest club in the world’.

The chief obstacle remains the Premier League’s increasingly-controversial Profit and Sustainability regulations that have prevented Newcastle from spending their way to the top in the manner that enabled Manchester City’s Abu Dhabi-based ownership group to overturn the established order after they took over at the Etihad in 2008.  As Staveley and her backers are finding, the Premier League’s big boys have made it considerably more difficult to break up their cartel.

It is also worth remembering that while Manchester City have swept all before them in the last decade or so, it took them three seasons under their current ownership to even qualify for the Champions League. In that respect, Newcastle were well ahead of schedule when they gatecrashed the top four last season, so if they were to end the current campaign with a place in either the Europa League or Conference League, that would probably be about par for the course in terms of a realistic long-term upward trajectory.

Nevertheless, watching Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final, as Manchester City’s superstars contemptuously brushed aside Newcastle without ever really having to get out of first gear, it was impossible not to reflect on the gulf that still separates the two clubs, and by extension that continues to separate the Magpies from the upper echelon of elite English clubs they aspire to join.

Off the pitch, the differences are vast. Manchester City’s annual income, which effectively dictates the amount they can spend on transfer fees and wages, stood at £712.8m in their most recent set of accounts. Newcastle’s, in comparison, was £250.3m. The gap is closing, but unless the regulations change, it is impossible to see it being bridged anytime soon.

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That plays out on the pitch, where for every Ruben Dias, Phil Foden and Erling Haaland in the City line-up, there was a Jamaal Lascelles, Sean Longstaff and Jacob Murphy in the Newcastle side. Honest professionals undoubtedly, but players who are remnants from the Mike Ashley and Steve Bruce era that repeatedly featured battles against relegation rather than assaults on the top of the table. Turn to the bench, and leaving aside the goalkeeper, Pep Guardiola could call on seven full internationals and a Spain Under-21 international regarded as one of the brightest young prospects in Europe. Eddie Howe had five full-backs of varying ages and quality, two homegrown midfielders still making their way in the game and Miguel Almiron.

Yes, Newcastle have a host of influential senior players injured. Yes, their campaign has been adversely affected by the packed schedule in the first half of the season and the way in which Howe has had to run some of his few fit players into the ground. Nevertheless, the Magpies will head into what already feels like a pivotal summer with their limitations glaringly apparent as other supposed rivals continue to move further and further ahead of them.

The Northern Echo: Phil Foden successfully holds off Dan BurnPhil Foden successfully holds off Dan Burn (Image: PA)

“Newcastle took a big step and reached another level,” said a supportive Pep Guardiola, when asked to reflect on the Magpies’ standing in his post-match press conference. “But this is the first time they’ve played in four competitions. That means playing every three days, especially at the beginning. When it’s the first time, it's not easy for any club.

“I’m sure they’ll take lessons because the potential is there. Last season was unbelievable, but they played one game a week. This season they’ve played a lot, and it’s completely different. When you have experience, you can handle the training and the minutes. I’m pretty sure they will learn the lessons and take decisions to try and still be there.”

Unlike Howe, Guardiola can reflect on a campaign that continues to blossom on all fronts. Having already claimed the World Club Championship, City remain on track for an unprecedented ‘double treble’ with the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League all still within their reach in the final two months of the season.

They were never really extended on Saturday, with Howe’s attempt to shore things up defensively by switching to a five-man backline not having the desired effect. Newcastle were wide open down their left-hand side throughout the first half, with the decision to play a patently out-of-form Dan Burn at left wing-back ahead of both Lewis Hall and Matt Targett hard to fathom, and Joe Willock seemingly unsure of his defensive duties as he repeatedly failed to get close enough to Bernardo Silva.

Silva opened the scoring in the 13th minute when his shot from the corner of the area deflected off Burn and looped over Martin Dubravka, and repeated the trick just after the half-hour mark when another shot from a similar position flicked off Sven Botman’s head to wrongfoot the Newcastle goalkeeper.

The visitors’ only effort on target came nine minutes before the break, but while Alexander Isak made a decent connection with his swivelled half-volley after Burn nodded down at the back post, Stefan Ortega got down to make a smart save.