Southampton and Middlesbrough‘s managers clashed and had to be separated in the first half of their frosty play-off semi-final second leg on Tuesday night.
Saints boss Tonda Eckert and his rival Kim Hellberg became enraged at each other on the touchline, requiring intervention from the referee, nearest linesman, and fourth official.
It marked another chapter in what Sky Sports dubbed football’s ‘Cold War’ amid an investigation into Southampton for alleged spying ahead of the first leg.
Daily Mail Sport revealed last Thursday that a Southampton first-team analyst was caught allegedly recording Middlesbrough’s training from the bushes ahead of Saturday’s play-off semi-final first leg, which ended goalless.
On Friday night, the EFL charged the South Coast club with a breach of their rules.
There was no love lost between Eckert and Hellberg coming into this clash, with the latter extending a dismissive handshake to his opponent ahead of kick-off.
Southampton didn’t even want the game to go ahead so soon. They asked for more time to asked for more time to complete an internal review, while Middlesbrough have been pushing for their expulsion from the post-season.
Daily Mail Sport understands there is a suspicion that the sessions of several Championship clubs have been secretly observed by Saints staff this season.
Sources close to the case say the League have been asked to obtain all relevant devices and records that could reveal evidence of previous spying. A digital footprint of suspected individuals, including bank statements, could prove significant, if such activity did occur on multiple occasions.
It is not yet known if this evidence will form part of Southampton’s impending hearing in front of an independent disciplinary commission or when that will take place, with the play-off final scheduled for a week on Saturday.
The commission has it within their power to impose a range of sanctions if Southampton are found guilty of spying, from a fine to expulsion from this season’s competition. It is thought Middlesbrough’s hierarchy will push for the latter.
That being the case, it is likely Hellberg’s squad would continue training for the time being.
Sources with knowledge of the investigation believe that the suggestion Southampton could claim the spying was the work on a lone individual within the club would not be taken seriously.
We revealed last week that the person accused of spying on Middlesbrough is an intern in his early 20s. It is thought he deleted videos and pictures on his mobile phone when confronted by Boro staff, before running into the nearby Rockliffe Hall and changing clothes and fleeing the area.
Eckert refused to answer questions on the accusations following the first leg at the Riverside Stadium, and the club did not hold a pre-match press conference ahead of Tuesday night’s return game. If senior individuals within the club admit or are proven to have known about spying, it would raise serious questions over their future.
Hellberg accused Southampton of ‘cheating’ at the weekend and his club want Southampton’s punishment to be ‘sporting’ rather than a mere financial penalty, if found guilty.
The Boro head coach revealed on Monday that his squad practised penalty kicks last week, again highlighting the advantage Southampton could have gained by recording their session.
Hellberg chose to sidestep the majority of Spygate questions, but he did say: ‘I follow the rules. It’s very simple, very, very simple. It’s a question of rules, and we follow the rules. Then it’s the people who make the rules and how they’re going to stand up to the rules. That’s what it’s about (now).’
More to follow.