The full scale of Southampton’s ‘Spygate’ shame was laid bare on Monday when the EFL released a 39-page written judgment detailing how Saints spied on Oxford United, Ipswich Town and Middlesbrough — and the WhatsApp message that said it all: “You legend. The manager loved it.”
The report confirms the first punished incident came before Southampton’s 2-1 Boxing Day defeat at Oxford. The League One side had just sacked Gary Rowett and appointed caretaker Craig Short, making them a prime target for intel.
A young Saints intern was ordered to film Oxford’s training. After sending the footage back, he received a reply: “You legend. Manager loved it.”
Head coach Tonda Eckert insists he never personally watched the video and claims it had “no impact” on his prep for the game Saints went on to lose 2-1. But the EFL ruled the intent alone breached regulations.
Most damning is the intern’s testimony. “I didn’t really have an option and wasn’t provided an opportunity to say no. I was an intern and was doing what I was told,” he told investigators.
The report shows the spying didn’t stop at Oxford. Similar operations were carried out ahead of games against Ipswich and Middlesbrough — the latter triggering the complaint that got Saints thrown out of the Championship play-offs last month.
Eckert has since apologized, stating: “I am responsible for everything that has happened at this football club.” Owner Dragan Solak, however, is standing by him, calling his 2026 form “remarkable” and saying the club’s “only objective” is promotion.
Yet the 39-page dossier paints a picture of a systematic campaign, with junior staff used as pawns. The EFL is still weighing further sanctions, including a points deduction and a touchline ban for Eckert.
For Saints fans, “You legend” now reads like an epitaph for a promotion dream killed not by results, but by secrets.
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