PAUL DUMMETT and Matt Ritchie could be offered new contracts at Newcastle United if the club qualify for next season’s Europa Conference League.

Both Dummett and Ritchie are in the final years of their current deals at St James’ Park and are due to become free agents next month.

Dummett, who was a stoppage-time substitute in yesterday’s final-day win at Brentford, has made two starts and six substitute appearances in all competitions this season, while Ritchie, who was an unused substitute at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium, has made one start and 16 replacement appearances.

The pair were both part of the squad that flew to Australia last night ahead of this week’s exhibition matches against Tottenham and an A-League All Stars team, but as things stand they have not been offered new contracts with the Magpies.

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That could change, though, if Newcastle qualify for the Conference League this weekend as the extra matches that would swell next season’s fixture list would make increased demands on Eddie Howe’s squad.

Whereas Howe was unable to make too many changes in the group stages of the Champions League this term because of the strength of the opposition, the demands of the Conference League group stage would be much less taxing. As a result, the Magpies boss would like to have the option of resting players in the early stages of the competition and potentially calling on the likes of Dummett and Ritchie to fill the gaps.

Newcastle will discover their European fate on Saturday when Manchester City face Manchester United in the FA Cup final. If City win at Wembley, Newcastle are guaranteed a Conference League spot.

“The players that you’re talking about (Dummett and Ritchie) are just incredible characters,” said Howe. “There’s a slight doubt over their futures, but we go to Australia with them.

“I think European qualification might potentially have a bearing on what happens with their futures. What I will say about Paul Dummett and Matt Ritchie is that they’ve just been incredible servants to the football club. I absolutely love their characters and what they’ve given.”

Dummett turns 33 in September, and made his senior Newcastle debut back in August 2013 when he came off the bench in a defeat to Manchester City. Ritchie will be 35 in September, and has been with the Magpies since signing from Bournemouth in the summer of 2016.

The pair are clearly coming towards the end of their careers, but Howe remains convinced they still have something to offer, particularly if Newcastle find themselves competing in both the Carabao Cup and Conference League in the first half of next season.

The Newcastle boss also values the pair’s input and influence off the pitch, with their seniority meaning they continue to play a prominent role within the club’s leadership group despite their lack of involvement on a matchday.

Both players are popular figures within the dressing room, and while there will be changes this summer, Howe does not want to completely dismantle the first-team group he has assembled over the course of his Tyneside tenure.

“I think sometimes it’s very easy to define success by what happens on the pitch,” he said. “But you have to have a process – you have the training-ground work and the environment and culture you’re trying to create.

“These two players have been absolutely fundamental to how we work behind the scenes, and I can’t speak highly enough of them both.”