Aussie star at middle of $370 million cheating scandal that's rocked English football
Final plans for the so-called richest game in football could be put on ice amid a cheating saga that has rocked the game.
On Wednesday morning, Southampton progressed to the Championship play-off final against Hull after an extra time 2-1 second-leg win over Middlesbrough.
But only days earlier, the club was charged by the English Football League for allegedly spying on its opponents in the lead up to the match.
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If the club is found guilty, it could be kicked out of the race for promotion from the second-tier of English football into the Premier League, and a chance at the $370m prize that comes with securing the promotion.
Southampton's Ryan Manning celebrates the win with teammate Welington. Getty
The Championship play-off final is the richest single game in European club football – richer even than a Premier League title decider, the FA Cup final, and the UEFA Champions League final.
The windfall isn't technically a 'prize', rather access to TV rights, commercial revenue and other payouts that go along with playing in the top flight of English football.
Even though their season is officially over, Middlesbrough will reportedly continue to train in the hopes Southampton would be excluded, which would elevate them back into the playoff match.
Should Middlesbrough secure promotion back into the Premier League, Socceroo Riley McGree would likely become the 53rd Australian to play in the competition since 1992.
Two days before the first of the two-leg semi final, a Southampton analyst was busted literally hiding in bushes at Middlesbrough's headquarters filming a training session.
Riley McGree (left) would become the 53rd Aussie to play in the Premier League since 1992. Getty
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the analyst was confronted, and then left the area after deleting the footage. The EFL immediately opened an investigation, which it then referred to an independent disciplinary commission.
The commission was charged with investigating two potential breaches - one that prohibits teams from observing an opponent's training session within 72 hours of a match, and a second that requires clubs to act with "utmost good faith" towards others.
Middlesbrough manager Kim Hellberg said after the 0-0 draw in the first leg of the semi final every club in the Championship should be "angry" about Southampton's conduct.
"Some people say it doesn't give you a big advantage. That's wrong. It's a massive advantage," Hellberg said. "Without it, it would have been impossible for them to know our shape in the first half. We have never used that shape before today ...
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Middlesbrough keeper Sol Brynn was in tears after the final whistle. AP
"Someone at Southampton has made the decision to go and cheat. That's clear. It's just wrong."
Several others reportedly approached clubs with their own concerns they had been spied on before matches.
Southampton insists the analyst was a "lone wolf", and not part of a broader spying program.
After the second leg, a "heartbroken" Hellberg said a fine would not be adequate punishment, and that he had "nothing to say" to Southampton counterpart Tonda Eckert.
"If we didn't catch that man who they sent up, five hours to drive, you would sit here and say 'well done' maybe in the tactical aspects of the game, and I would go home and feel like I have failed in that aspect that I had to help my players," Hellberg said.
Middlesbrough manager Kim Hellberg. NurPhoto via Getty Images
"But when that is taken away from you, when someone decides: 'Nah, we're not going to watch every game, we'll send someone instead, we'll film the session, and see everything, and hope they don't get caught' … it breaks my heart."
In his own press conference, Eckert initially offered a "no comment" when asked about the allegations in the first question, but walked out when asked if he was a "cheat" in the second. He did the same thing following the first leg.
It's not the first time allegations of spying have rocked English football. In 2019, then-Leeds United boss Marcelo Bielsa admitted he had sent an assistant coach to watch Derby County train before a play-off match, and then revealed it was part of an intelligence-gathering tactic he had used throughout his career.
Rules at the time did not strictly rule out the practice, and Leeds were only fined. The rules have since been tightened.
Southampton FC head coach Tonda Eckert. Southampton FC via Getty Images
Middlesbrough was last in the Premier League in 2016-2017. They had been promoted back into the competition at the start of that year, but were relegated again after a single season.
Southampton were relegated from the Premier League at the end of last season.
The teams who finish in the top two spots in the Championship earn automatic promotion into the Premier League, while a third goes up after a knock-out series involving the clubs from third to sixth.
Coventry topped the league to end a 34-year absence from the top flight, ahead of Ipswich Town.
Sixth-place Hull defeated third-placed Millwall 2-0 on aggregate to secure their spot in the play-off, before Shea Charles secured Southampton's spot with a 116th-minute winner.
