Hayden Hackney & John McGinn react to heartbreaking Middlesbrough star update | OneFootball

Middlesbrough star Tommy Conway has revealed he is heartbroken to be missing the play-off final and World Cup through injury

Middlesbrough will be without one of their key assets when they take on Hull City in Saturday's Championship play-off final.

Boro have been handed the right to take on Hull for a place in the Premier League as Southampton were kicked out of the play-offs for spying.

A member of Saints staff was caught spying on a Middlesbrough training session before the first leg of their semi-final, while the South Coast club have also admitted to committing the same offence against both Oxford United and Ipswich Town in the regular season.

Southampton have been deducted four points ahead of next season as well as being kicked out of the play-offs, having lost their appeal against the sanctions.

Middlesbrough ace Tommy Conway issues emotional message following injury

Forward Tommy Conway has been a key player for Boro this term, notching 13 goals and five assists, having featured in all 46 of their Championship games.

The Scotland international was in particularly good form at the end of the season, scoring a brace against Watford on 25 April before notching another goal against Wrexham on 2 May.

Sadly, though, the former Bristol City star suffered an ankle injury in the second leg of Middlesbrough's semi-final clash with Southampton, and won't be able to play in the Championship play-off final.

His injury also means that he can't play for Scotland in this summer's World Cup.

Taking to Instagram on Thursday, the 23-year-old wrote: "Heartbroken doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel. Missing out on our biggest game of the season with the boys on Saturday, after giving everything this season, doesn’t seem fair.

"However, this team is an amazing group of lads, and I know they’ll give their all on that pitch to achieve our goal. I’ll be one of you guys, on Saturday, cheering them all on from the stands. Let’s create the Riverside magic in Wembley!

"Also, missing out on the chance to represent my country at a World Cup is incredibly painful. It’s something I’ve dreamed about for so long, and having that opportunity taken away from me is hard to put into words right now.

"Sometimes life takes a different path than the one we planned. As difficult as this moment is, I trust there’s a reason behind it. For now, my full focus is on recovering properly, and I’m determined to come back stronger than ever.

Conway's Middlesbrough teammate Hayden Hackney commented: "You’ll be back!" alongside a red heart emoji.

Hackney, who was named as the Championship player of the season, has been exceptional for Boro this campaign, but he has been missing through injury in recent weeks.

However, speaking to BBC Sport, Boro boss Kim Hellberg revealed that the talented midfielder is 'ready' to feature in the play-off final against Hull.

According to TeamTalk, Everton are keen on Hackney, so Middlesbrough will likely have to clinch promotion to the Premier League to retain the 23-year-old's services.

Meanwhile, Conway's Scotland teammate Andy Robertson supportively commented on the striker's post: "Look after yourself, mate", while John McGinn left two red heart emojis in the comments section.

Steve Clarke's men will face Haiti, Morocco, and Brazil in the group stage of this summer's World Cup, and will have to face those challenges without the Middlesbrough ace.

This summer's World Cup marks Scotland's first since 1998, making Conway's injury even tougher for him to take.

Boro's play-off final has become more challenging thanks to Tommy Conway injury

Middlesbrough and Hull faced a non-ideal build-up to their Championship play-off final, thanks to Southampton's spying antics.

Both sides will have to put that to one side, though, as they battle each other for a spot in next season's Premier League alongside automatically promoted duo Coventry City and Ipswich.

Meanwhile, Boro will also have to adjust to the fact that Conway is unavailable, having been one of their best attackers throughout the season.