Southampton Football Club has offered a permanent position within its academy to Will Salt, the 23-year-old intern involved in the "Spygate" scandal. Salt was observed filming Middlesbrough's training session prior to a Championship play-off semi-final.
Following revelations by Daily Mail Sport, Southampton was ultimately excluded from the competition. An EFL panel heard that Salt stated he was acting on instructions from superiors and did not have the option to refuse. There was considerable sympathy for the young intern.
The full scope of the club's actions came to light in May when the written reasons for the club's unsuccessful appeal against their expulsion were published. The involvement of manager Tonda Eckert was detailed, as were the club's attempts to conceal spying activities that extended beyond the incident with Middlesbrough.
WhatsApp messages uncovered during the EFL investigation indicated that Salt was congratulated after a spying mission on Oxford United in December, with one message stating, "You legend. Manager loved it." Eckert faced intense scrutiny regarding his position. After receiving support from owner Dragan Solak, Eckert issued an eight-minute apology to supporters.
"I think you deserve that. For everything that's happened, I do want to apologise, and I hold my hand up because as a head coach, I am responsible," Eckert said in his apology. "I am responsible for everything that has happened in this football club. I am responsible for everything that has happened in my coaching staff."