Tonda Eckert reveals huge Southampton team news boost ahead of Middlesbrough | OneFootball

Southampton are to be at full strength for their play-off semi-final clash at Middlesbrough on Saturday

The EFL play-offs are upon us this weekend, and arguably the semi-final tie that stands out the most is Southampton's battle with Middlesbrough.

The Saints haven't been beaten in league action since mid-January, heading into the postseason on the back of a 19-game unbeaten run in the Championship, with one defeat - against Manchester City in the FA Cup - in their last 23 games in all competitions.

Meanwhile, Middlesbrough have earned plenty of plaudits for their approach to games and their style of play under Kim Hellberg ever since the Swedish boss arrived at the Riverside in late November, and some wasteful finishing over a seven-game winless run towards the end of the season was all that stopped them from easily finishing in the top two.

But, with a 5-1 thrashing of Watford and an entertaining 2-2 draw on the final day against Wrexham, it seems like that scoring drought is past them. Plus, Boro's struggles have come against sides who have sat in and frustrated them, something which Southampton aren't likely to do.

So, it's all set up to be a thoroughly entertaining two legs of action, and both sides will need to be as full strength as possible to overcome the other. Luckily for Tonda Eckert, his side is.

Southampton will be "full strength" for play-off clash, according to Tonda Eckert

Tonda Eckert delivered positive news on the status of captain Jack Stephens and wideman Kuryu Matsuki in his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's trip to the Riverside, while also confirming that Flynn Downes has served the three-match ban he retroactively incurred after the win at Swansea City last month.

Indeed, only Mads Roerslev, who hasn't played since Eckert's second game in charge against Sheffield Wednesday back in early November due to numerous injuries, is the only absentee from a "full-strength" squad.

"I'm quite positive that we will have a squad at full strength for the game that's coming up," he said when asked about Stephen's availability, before briefly adding, "yeah," when quizzed about Matsuki's return to training.

Stephens missed the final four games of the season with a minor calf issue, while Matsuki, who has really blossomed under Eckert in recent months, missed the final two games of the campaign with the same injury.

Southampton will be doing all they can to take the advantage back to St Mary's in the semi-final first leg

There hasn't been a more impressive side in the Championship since November, and especially in 2026, than Tonda Eckert's Southampton, and they're clearly the form team heading into the play-offs and the favourites to secure the third promotion place.

But Eckert said he hasn't let his squad, or himself for that matter, look too far ahead, and the basis of their 19-game unbeaten league run was focusing on one game at a time.

"We've not really looked too far ahead, but not even in the games we had over the past month. You just play your game and the best way that you think you can perform in a game," he explained.

"You look at the next game, and sometimes you do a rotation, but it's not that I look ahead many weeks ago and go 'on this game it's him, and this game it's him.'

"We've always put the strongest team out that we think has given us the highest chance of winning a game."

With a squad filled with quality and strength in depth, it's been useful for Eckert to chop and change at times, as he knows that the players who come in from the bench can maintain the high levels that have seen Southampton climb into the play-offs late on in the season.