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A successful Europa League run could be more helpful to England’s coefficient ranking than qualifying for the Champions League knockout stages as the Premier League looks to keep hold of its fourth qualifying spot in Europe’s elite competition.

Manchester United will be playing in Europe’s second competition from February after finishing third in their group following a defeat to Wolfsburg on Tuesday, while Arsenal and Chelsea’s Champions League hopes hang by a thread ahead of this week’s final group games.

There is concern that Serie A could snatch England’s fourth Champions League qualifying slot for the beginning of the 2017/18 season due to a stronger coefficient.

Plansfor a breakaway A-League have been postponed after Football Federation Australia gave disgruntled club owners greater control of the game’s immediate future.

Clubs were appeased after Wednesday’s meeting at FFA HQ, with new FFA chairman Steven Lowy agreeing to crucial changes and financial transparency in the short-term.

The biggest development was the FFA ratifying a new committee giving clubs more ownership of TV rights negotiations and future marketing strategies, including the recruitment of marquee players.

Active supporter groups from across the A-League have confirmed their boycott of games is off after reaching an agreement in principle with Football Federation Australia on Wednesday night.

Releasing a joint statement on Facebook following the meeting, fans expressed their pleasure with negotiating the implementation of a “fair and equitable (appeals) system”.

“The minimum requirements of those systems have been agreed to, with the finer details to be finalised shortly,” read Sydney FC’s the Cove statement, with similar being issued by the major fan groups.