Southampton v Middlesbrough: level tie for play-off final place | OneFootball

Southampton host Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off semi-final second leg on Tuesday, 12 May 2026 at St Mary's, with the tie level after a goalless first leg and a place in the final on the line.

Southampton finished fourth and Middlesbrough fifth, both on 80 points. The first leg ended 0-0, while earlier league meetings brought a 1-1 draw at St Mary's and a 4-0 home win for Middlesbrough in January.

Boro arrive unbeaten in five, with two wins in that sequence, while Saints have one win in five. The visitors' recent edge on results meets a home side that have scored freely across the season.

Team news shapes the midfield battle. Saints are without Alex McCarthy and Mads Roerslev. Boro miss Darragh Lenihan, Alfie Jones, Alex Bangura and Hayden Hackney, with Hackney having provided seven league assists. Key threats include Morgan Whittaker on 14 Championship goals and Tommy Conway on 13 for Boro, while Adam Armstrong and Finn Azaz have 11 apiece for Saints. Léo Scienza leads their assist chart with 10.

The Saints have hit 82 league goals at 1.7 per game, with 56% possession and 84.02% pass accuracy. Their 634 open-play crosses and 17 headed goals suggest wide deliveries could be a route. Boro have conceded 47 and kept 14 clean sheets, controlling games with 59% possession and 84.62% passing, so they may look to dictate tempo and feed Whittaker or Conway between the lines.

With the tie goalless and these sides level on regular season points, small margins could decide who reaches the play-off final. Boro's steadier run meets Saints' attacking volume, and one clinical moment may be enough to settle it.