Southampton’s squad have broken their silence on the Spygate scandal after the club lost their appeal against being expelled from the Championship play-off final.
Tonda Eckert’s side were kicked out by an independent disciplinary commission on Tuesday, after Daily Mail Sport revealed that the Saints had sent a junior analyst intern to watch Middlesbrough’s training 48 hours before their meeting in the semi-final first leg. They have also been deducted four points for next season.
Southampton admitted to having spied on their opponents – and two other teams – but appealed against the punishment imposed, which puts promotion to the Premier League out of reach for another year.
However, their appeal was turned down on Wednesday and the decision stands, meaning Middlesbrough will take the Saints’ place and play Hull City in the final at Wembley on Saturday.
Following the news, Saints stars Kuryu Matsuki and Leo Scienza took to social media to express their anger and frustration.
Scienza shone in 2025-26 with seven goals and ten assists in 37 Championship appearances, form that saw him named as both the fans’ and players’ player of the season at St Mary’s.
Southampton’s playing squad have broken their silence on the Spygate scandal
Tonda Eckert’s side were expelled from the Championship play-off final earlier this week
He posted a picture in black and white on his Instagram page of himself on his haunches and added: ‘Disappointment, anger, sadness… it’s difficult to find the right words for what we’re all feeling right now.
‘What has happened over the last days is heartbreaking for the club, for every player in this dressing room, and above all for our supporters. A moment like this should never end the way it did.
‘I feel sorry for every football fan, as well as the players and supporters of Hull and Boro, who were caught up in all of this chaos too.
‘We gave everything for this dream. Day after day, sacrifice after sacrifice, always believing we could bring this club back to where it belongs. For me, the dream of playing in the Premier League was something I fought for with everything I had. That’s why this pain cuts so deep.’
Scienza continued: ‘The hardest part is knowing how much our fans deserved this moment. You stood behind us all season with incredible passion, loyalty and belief. Even in the toughest moments, you carried us forward.
‘Thank you for staying with us through everything, you definitely deserved better.’
Matsuki shared a similar post where he highlighted the role of fans in Southampton’s stunning turnaround this season – which saw them go from 21st in November to fourth by the end of the campaign.
He said: ‘To all the fans and supporters, thank you very much for your incredible support throughout this season.
‘It is difficult to put my feelings into words right now, but from the very beginning of the season, we set ourselves the goal of earning promotion to the Premier League, and every single day we fought together while supporting one another.
‘And without a doubt it was all of you – our fans and supporters – who stood by us until the very end and gave us the strength to keep moving forward. Thank you very much for everything.’
Southampton star Leo Scienza shared a social media post, expressing his ‘disappointment, anger and sadness’
His teammate Kuryu Matsuki also shared a post and thanked fans for their ‘incredible’ support
Being barred from Saturday’s final means Southampton – who beat Middlesbrough 2-1 on aggregate – miss out on a tilt at the richest prize in football, with the game valued at £200million for the winner.
Daily Mail Sport also reported on Wednesday that – with £250,000 worth of bonuses for the players who might have won promotion on the line, coupled with various wage increases associated with going up – the squad could yet consider a class action suit to sue their club for loss of earnings.
Many may also look to leave the club over the summer and there will likely be interest in several Saints players given their impressive performances this season.
Fans are also demanding refunds for tickets and travel already purchased for the trip to Wembley and urged the club to conduct an internal review and discipline those involved if necessary.
Southampton did not comment on Tuesday when asked if Eckert would be the subject of internal disciplinary action.
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However, it is understood that the German is fearing for his job, and his position could become untenable in the fallout from the saga.
Southampton failed to win any of the three games they admitted to spying in the build-up towards, with the most controversial of those operations preceding a 0-0 draw in this month’s play-off semi-final first leg.
In December, Oxford, who sacked manager Gary Rowett two days before Christmas, suspected that training, taken by caretaker coach Craig Short, was observed before their game against Southampton on Boxing Day. The club admitted to this, but Oxford still won that encounter 2-1 in a shock result at the time.
The Ipswich game in April was also a crucial clash in the promotion battle, but yet again Southampton failed to win as they were held to a 2-2 draw, adding to their woe over the saga.
