It has been the perennial challenge at Celtic since the millennium; how to plot a course into the honey pots of cash available to those fortunate enough to ply their trade in the top five European leagues. And Peter Lawwell, Celtic’s chief executive, has pledged that the club will never stop looking to engineer a way to play in a broader church.

Changes are afoot in European football with German and Spanish clubs wary of being left behind because of the massive TV revenue available to clubs in the English Premier League. Lawell’s remit is to keep Celtic involved in any negotiations and changes while also looking to drive Celtic into an area where their own cash flow can be maximised.

Celtic playing in the English top flight is a question that has been both muted and dismissed with regularity over the last decade, but Lawwell remains persistent in spearheading some form of change that would enhance his club’s ability to pull in revenue that matches that on offer to those in the top leagues.

“We will never give up the ambition of playing more regularly in an environment that allows us to compete at a higher level,” said Lawwell. “In Scotland, I would like to continue to dominate and be regularly in the Champions League, getting out of the group stages and pushing as far as we can go. If you asked what I might hope for it would be that in among all the changes that are taking place in Europe, I would like to be able to optimise our potential by playing in a football environment that has got bigger media values and bigger markets. That is what holds us back.

“It is very difficult but things are loosening and changing and UEFA are recognising that there are clubs like us who feel the same way. Hopefully we can be part of any changes that benefit Celtic. For the sake of Celtic and for the sake of Scottish football we need to find solutions to playing our domestic football in a market of 5 million people with meagre TV revenues. It is the only reason why we are left behind.

“Your number one hope would be the British football league where we could go and compete against the biggest teams in Britain, where there are natural rivalries and there is a natural sovereignty in terms of the United Kingdom. That is what we would like to see develop and we have always said that. If that doesn’t happen then we would like to be involved in a more expanded European competition although I don’t know what form that would take.”

In the meantime, Celtic’s ambitions lie in establish themselves firmly as a Champions League team. That in itself is no easy task given the magnitude of the job in qualifying for the elite tournament at a time of the season when the club have barely kicked a competitive ball, nor when there are groups, such as this season’s, when the bar is considerably high.

“If we keep progressing and getting better then our target should be to get out the groups, with a bit of luck – you do need a wee bit of luck with the draw,” said Lawwell. “But that is our aim. We can’t just settle for getting into the Champions League. We want to keep pushing to get better and better and that means striving to get out of the group and doing that on a regular basis. In terms of finances, there are huge challenges to do that but it is the way that we are focused. In my time we have done it three times, so it can be done.”

Celtic qualified for the Champions League this season as one of five countries from middle-tiered nations who emerged from the champions route, but there will be one less place up for grabs from 2018.

From then the new format will automatically give four places to the top four nations – Spain, England, Germany and Italy – giving rise to fears that Europe’s premier competition could become a closed shop to teams such as Celtic, who are based in much less prestigious domestic leagues.

Lawwell, a voice on the ECA [European Club Association board] has been pro-active in ensuring that any changes which are implemented are done so with Celtic still guaranteed a part of it. However, he has admitted to some frustration at the proposed new format.

“We are disappointed,” he said. “We are disappointed in how it happened and the overall changes. We do feel that it could have been an awful lot worse and the retention of the champions’ route was vital so we are happy that happened. We don’t think it is great for Scotland or for Celtic but there is some form of compromise in there.

“It is going to be more difficult through the Champions’ route but that way is still open to us getting in.

“It is the revenue but it is also the prestige and the profile that is important to us as a club; it is where we believe that Celtic should be. No matter who you meet, whether it is Barcelona or Manchester United they still see Celtic as a top class European football club. Part of that reputation is based on participation in the Champions League. That is something we are proud of and want to maintain.”

Celtic will conclude this season’s involvement in the competition tomorrow night at the Etihad where the curtain will come down on their European season against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side. The Parkhead side have taken two points from a group containing Barcelona, City and Borussia Monchengladbach, but there were some who feared the worst upon viewing Celtic’s opening game in the Nou Camp.

A 7-0 defeat, the heaviest European defeat in the club’s history, was how the group kicked off but there has been a maturation in performances in the competition since then. Lawwell will look to utilise some of the funds from this term’s run – believed to total almost £30m – in strengthening the playing personnel in order that there is another Champions League campaign for the club to look to next term.

“Because of the quality of opposition we have only two points so far but I do think you have to draw some encouragement from the manner of some of those performances,” he said. “Yes, we were all disappointed with the Nou Camp but there was a recovery after that and some of the performances have shown that we are on the right track. We do hope to strengthen between now and next season when we are back in and hopefully we will be even better.”

And while Celtic will always be punching above their weight in the European arena, that has created a steady focus on domestic requirements. The Parkhead side have attempted in recent years to adopt the long-term vision in order to create a foundation on which to establish themselves in the company of those at the forefront of European football.

“When money is limited we need to be cleverer than anyone else; that means the best recruitment, the best scientists, the best performance analysis,” said Lawwell. “That is the strategy and has been for a number of years. We strive always to be the very best that we can on and off the park. We also have an outstanding manager meets our ambition and our objectives. Brendan has been fantastic. He had to get to know the players and he vowed to give everyone a chance; 10 out of the 11 who started the League Cup final were here last year. He has brought in new players which has been a success and he also steered us through the most important games which were the qualifiers. We believe that together we can take the club forward.”