Shock new claim made on Southampton's Ipswich Town spying mission | OneFootball

The drama surrounding Southampton's spygate scandal continuesshocking to evolve, as more shock information has been revealed

The spygate scandal continues to unfold, as the ramifications of this ongoing story are set to drag all the way through the summer, with new information unfolding in real time.

It's official, Southampton have been kicked out of the EFL Championship play-offs just days before they were due to take on Hull City at Wembley in the final, after an independent hearing found the club guilty of spying on Middlesbrough's training sessions.

It was Boro who the Saints knocked out with a 2-1 victory in the second leg at St Mary's, sparking wild celebrations amongst the Southampton fanbase, who had assumed that they were on their way to England's grandest stadium for the second time in a matter of weeks.

However, Southampton further admitted to spying on an additional three Championship clubs shortly before clashes with them, including Ipswich Town and Oxford United.

Now, more information surrounding the extent of the Saints' spying over the months is being revealed in a flurry, as information surrounding their spying tactics on Ipswich in particular is absolutely shocking.

Southampton used an Eastleigh kit disguise to spy on Ipswich Town before their clash

The ramifications of this spygate drama, as yet, are unforeseen, but almost certain to be huge, not just for Southampton.

Clubs across the Championship will be wanting to lodge their own complaints over the Saints' spying, with Wrexham, who just missed out on the play-offs on the final day, likely making a case for how they should've been allowed to play in the play-offs.

Lawsuits could even come into play, as this is merely just the beginning of this saga.

Tonda Eckert's outright cheating has been premeditated, without question, as it has now been revealed that the club even went to the extent of disguising their spies in Eastleigh gear whilst spying on Ipswich in April, which finished 2-2.

Eastleigh is located just north of Southampton, and to ensure they weren't making it blatantly obvious that they were spying this time around, they disguised themselves as their close rivals to not draw suspicion.

Indeed, the extent to which they have intricately planned spying on each team cannot be anything other than a deliberate act, with the knowledge of what they were doing, was obviously not only wrong, but illegal in the rules of the game.

Southampton had planned to get away with this, clearly, and they have now received the worst punishment they could have possibly gotten at this stage, losing the chance to play in the richest game in the sport, worth in excess of £200 million.

The price they pay will certainly be more than what they spent on train fares for their spy(s), and however much they paid for an Eastleigh kit, as Southampton are hit with a brutal reality of their actions.

It's a bitter pill to swallow for Saints fans, who would've known nothing about their club's active cheating in the past months, and can only be disappointed with the way they have been deceived.

The consequences of their actions are only beginning to bear fruit for Southampton, as Tonda Eckert has nowhere to hide

Eckert almost certainly won't come back from this, at least not in England, with his reputation having taken a mighty hit.

The German led Southampton to an FA Cup final and within touching distance of automatic promotion after a meteoric rise up the division, losing just one of their final 25 games.

Now, that record, however impressive it may be, is permanently tainted, and where he goes from here remains to be seen.

Had Southampton managed to secure automatic promotion, then their spy may never have been caught at Middlesbrough, and they may have earned their spot in the Premier League undetected.

Fortunately for those in the division who have adhered to the rules, they have been caught, and as this crazy situation continues to develop, the more the walls close in on Eckert, who has nowhere to hide, not even in an Eastleigh kit.