Middlesbrough suspect Southampton of further offences as Championship clubs pile on

Middlesbrough believe the Southampton Spygate scandal extends beyond just the filming of one training session.

Saints facing punishment if found guilty of spying on Boro

In what has been dubbed Spygate, the Saints are alleged to have sent a member of staff to watch Boro’s training ahead of the first leg of the play-off semi-final, which ended 0-0 at The Riverside Stadium.

Tonda Eckert’s side then went on to win the second leg 2-1 after extra-time, sparking an emotional response from opposite number Kim Hellberg, who said: “If we wouldn’t have caught that man they sent up on a five-hour drive, you would sit there and say, well done, maybe, in the tactical aspect of the game and I would go home and feel like I had failed in that aspect I had to help my players with.

“When that is taken away from you in that way, when someone decides: ‘No, we’re not going to watch every game. We’ll send someone instead and film the session and see everything and hope we don’t get caught’. It breaks my heart in terms of all those things I believe in. That’s the thing.”

As reported by The Daily Mail, the individual responsible has been identified as Southampton intern William Salt, and their update has revealed a startling ‘paper trail’ which could land Saints in further trouble.

Indeed, Salt is said to have used his bank card at Rockliffe Hall Golf Club, which is owned by Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson, and there is a possibility of finding ‘transactions close to the bases of other Championship clubs’.

Boro now believe there is evidence trailing ‘across the country’ and their play-off semi-final opponents have committed further offences, with another unnamed Championship side also of the belief they have been spied on.

An independent commission is set to review the evidence before making a decision, and Hellberg’s side are set to continue training before a resolution is reached, with the Championship play-off final set to take place on May 23rd.

Possible punishments for Southampton in Spygate saga

The news will no doubt be of great concern to Southampton fans, especially because the punishment could be severe, with the BBC reporting Middlesbrough want them thrown out of the play-offs.

In that scenario, Boro could be awarded a 3-0 victory in the first leg, booking their spot at Wembley for the play-off final with a 4-2 aggregate victory.

The St. Mary’s outfit could also be handed a points deduction next season, which the Premier League would have to enforce if Eckert’s side manage to get past Hull City at Wembley.

At the moment, it is all very much up in the air, given that there is no real precedent, with Leeds United being found guilty of spying on Derby County at a much earlier stage of the season, at which point there were no laws in place to prevent them doing so.

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