Southampton take urgent action as Spygate decision U-Turn eyed | OneFootball

The Saints have been kicked out of the Championship play-offs.

The football world was rocked on Tuesday night after Southampton were kicked out of the Championship play-offs, but the story is far from over.

Tonda Eckert's side were expelled from the competition after an independent hearing into spying allegations and have been replaced by Middlesbrough, whom they knocked out over two legs in the semi-finals.

Not only have the Saints admitted spying on Boro, but they also admitted observing Ipswich Town and Oxford United's training sessions earlier in the season.

With the play-off final now due to take place between the Teesside club and Hull City on Saturday, time is of the essence if they want the decision overturned, but now it seems that all hope is not lost just yet for the South Coast club.

Southampton confident play-off expulsion will be reversed

Given that the play-off final is scheduled to be played this weekend, any decision on the Spygate saga was always going to be swift.

Indeed, it was swift and ruthless as Southampton were given the worst possible punishment imaginable, but now they are taking matters into their own hands.

BBC Sport reporter Simon Stone has revealed that he has been told that Saints' lawyers were intending to work overnight regarding an appeal to the EFL, given they were receiving the exact reason for the decision.

He added that the club feel that the punishment is exceptionally excessive compared to Leeds United, who were fined £200,000 for spying on Derby County's training session in 2019.

Furthermore, the club's staff have been told by their chief executive, Phil Parsons, that they are confident the decision will be reversed, while all parties agreed to get the situation dealt with today so that the final can still go ahead on Saturday.

Could Southampton's appeal be successful?

It appears that the Saints are confident the decision will be overturned, with their appeal to be heard by an entirely new panel this morning, with a result due by the evening at the latest.

Depending on the outcome of the appeal, the play-off final could then be postponed until Tuesday or Wednesday, which is bound to anger Hull supporters, but at present it is still set to go ahead on the weekend.

While Southampton are confident that their appeal will be successful, it is important to note that they are basing that on Leeds' punishment, but things have significantly changed since then.

Marcelo Bielsa's side had only breached one rule, but since then, a new rule has been introduced to deter things like this from happening again, so their punishment was bound to be more severe.

It is worth remembering that not only have the Saints been expelled from the play-offs, but they have also been given a four-point deduction for the start of next season, while Eckert and his colleagues will likely receive individual punishments too.

Now, Southampton are doing all they can to reverse their expulsion, but there is every chance that the decision will stand.