LONDON: Southampton manager Tonda Eckert has apologised for orchestrating the 'spygate' scandal that resulted in the club's expulsion from the Championship play-offs. Despite the controversy, owner Dragan Solak has insisted that he will not sack the German coach.
Expulsion and Points Deduction
Saints were removed from last month's play-off final after admitting they had observed a training session held by semi-final opponents Middlesbrough, along with two other similar incidents during the season. The club also received a four-point deduction that will be applied to the 2026/27 Championship table. The Football Association has opened its own investigation and could yet charge Eckert.
An independent disciplinary commission of the English Football League (EFL) ruled that there had been a 'contrived and determined plan from the top down to gain a competitive advantage' through spying missions. It stated that Eckert had authorised the tactics, highlighting the 'particularly deplorable' use of junior staff members to conduct the covert operations.
Impact on Play-Offs
Southampton had beaten Middlesbrough 2-1 over two legs in the play-off semi-finals, but Boro were reinstated. They went on to lose in the final to Hull, who were promoted to the Premier League.
Eckert's Apology
Eckert, appointed as head coach in December, released an eight-minute video statement on Southampton's social media channels on Tuesday. 'For everything that's happened I do want to apologise and I hold my hand up because as a head coach I am responsible for everything that has happened in this football club,' he said.
The 33-year-old added: 'I am devastated that after six months of building that relationship (with fans) back up, the season has come to an end, come to an end that couldn't have left us in a worse place than we are in right now.'
Defence of Actions
He claimed that observing other teams was routine in other countries, though admitted this was not an excuse for his actions in the English second tier. 'When I worked in Italy for over four years, every starting line-up that we've chosen for the games was always out in the media before games,' he said. 'And the reason is that our training sessions, especially the ones before games, have always been observed from the media and have always been observed from opponent teams that we came up against. (Pep) Guardiola has spoken about this in his time at Bayern Munich, that it has been common practice in Germany to observe training sessions, knowing that other teams would do the same.'
Owner's Support
Eckert was widely expected to lose his job after Southampton's expulsion from the play-offs, which cost the club a shot at an immediate return to the Premier League and a windfall of around £200 million ($269 million). However, Southampton chairman Solak gave robust backing to Eckert in his own post on the club's channels on Tuesday.
'Tonda's period as our head coach has been a success so far. Our form during 2026 has been remarkable and we believe he is the man to take us forward,' Solak said. 'As a board we are fully behind him and together we only have one objective -- we want promotion back to Premier League.'
Solak told the BBC separately that Tonda had been subject to a witch hunt in the media, saying that he believed the club had been 'over-sentenced'. The Serbian, whose media company acquired a majority stake of the south-coast club in 2022, said: 'I believe Tonda that he didn't know that it was the rule that he was breaking. My personal opinion, and the opinion of the board, is that he is a manager who deserves to be backed by us and to be supported by us.'
