The spying scandal surrounding FC Southampton and its German coach, Tonda Eckert, is becoming increasingly clear. Eckert has now spoken out in detail in a statement.
On Tuesday, Southampton FC released an eight-minute statement from coach Tonda Eckert, who provided detailed insights into the spying scandal. Because the Saints observed their opponents’ training sessions three games prior to the match during the past season in the English Championship, thereby violating EFL rules, the club was excluded from the playoff final for promotion to the Premier League.
Southampton had appealed the ruling, but the appeal was rejected. In addition to the exclusion, the Saints had four points deducted for the upcoming season. Furthermore, the FA is conducting an investigation into Eckert, who faces a potential suspension.
Newly released statements from the panel that rejected the club’s appeal against the exclusion further support the assumption that Eckert played a central role in the affair. On Monday, internal WhatsApp conversations, among other things, were made public. Staff members are said to have been pressured by Eckert to observe the Saints’ opponents.
“You’re a legend. The manager loves it”
According to the report, Eckert sent William Salt, an intern on the analytics team, to Oxford United as a spy for the first time in late December. “Mr. Eckert asked if someone could go to training in Oxford to observe the lineup and whether a certain player was fit to play,” Salt is quoted as saying. In his written statement to the commission, he further explained that he had “no real choice” but to accept the instruction and “was given no opportunity to refuse.” When he sent the footage to his boss, he received a WhatsApp message from the chief analyst: “Please try to find out as much as possible. You’re a legend. The manager loves it.”
Eckert explained in his statement that they “learned before the game against Oxford that they had changed managers and that the previous interim manager had always relied on a specific formation. We decided to send someone to observe training to see if they were switching from a back five to a back four.” At no point in his statement did Eckert elaborate on exactly how the internal communication took place. Southampton lost the match on Boxing Day 1-2.
The second instance of spying occurred on the day of the match against Ipswich Town in late April. According to his own account, Eckert had been alerted to a training session by the opponent in nearby Eastleigh and again arranged for it to be observed. Salt had refused, so an academy analyst took on the assignment. He is said to have worn the amateur club’s clothing and pretended to have a role with the club to gain access. Additionally, Eckert is said to have been sent CCTV footage.
Eckert commented: “I saw the footage for the first time two hours before kickoff. I had it stopped; none of it had any impact on how we played.” Southampton drew 2-2 with Ipswich.
Middlesbrough catches intern
The third case concerned the first leg of the playoff semifinals against Middlesbrough on May 9. Salt was again asked to take on the assignment and agreed. He later argued that he had feared his job would be in jeopardy if he had not done so. According to the committee, he was also criticized by Eckert for not traveling immediately after accepting the assignment.
This time, however, Salt was caught by Boro coaches filming a training session from behind a tree. Middlesbrough reported the Saints, and the case took its course. According to the panel, Eckert told the commission: “The videos were of poor quality, taken from a great distance, and therefore of no use to him