Does Southampton Spygate boss Eckert deserve a second chance?

Were Eckert to be in the dugout when Saints kick off their 2026-27 campaign in August, hampered by the four-point deduction which forms part of their punishment from the EFL, then those in the stands will have to contend with the fact that the man who both guided them into the play-offs and then cost them their place remains their leader.

Would dragging the scandal into another season really be welcome for fans?

"Southampton see Eckert as an excellent young manager," says Steve Grant, co-host of the Total Saints fan podcast.

"While this stuff has happened, from their perspective I think it would be foolish to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

"There is a real split between people saying 'let's not overreact, we've got a really good manager' and the opposite side taking the moralistic view and saying, 'we've been caught cheating and he has gone beyond the line of acceptability'.

"Keeping him would be a big risk. But football fans are very fickle and if he wins a few games at the start of next season then people will forget about this."

Image caption,

Eckert built up an excellent relationship with Southampton's players and fans after taking charge of the club's first team, but that has now been damaged by his role at the centre of the scandal

'Southampton need to sort out mess they made themselves'

For those associated with the club, the desire to watch a successful team next season is blended with a need to shake off the damage Eckert's actions have caused.

One of the more egregious conclusions drawn by the EFL investigation into Southampton's practices was that the young analyst intern who was caught spying outside Middlesbrough's training ground had raised concerns about the task he was given, but was put "under extreme pressure" to carry it out by more senior personnel, including Eckert.

In many workplaces, a senior staff member pressuring a junior colleague into performing a task which violates industry rules would be met with a swift and significant punishment.

But Solak told BBC Sport that the intern was at fault for not kicking up more of a fuss, saying: "I believe that our junior intern felt personally it's wrong, and he didn't feel right for doing this, and I think he should have expressed that stronger."

Solak insisted he has subsequently offered the intern analyst a full-time job with the club.

But the treatment of a young, inexperienced member of staff has raised concerns about the club's culture.

"The club has lacked in terms of leading on the problem, and sorting out their own mess," Tessem adds.

"I hope they have all learned a very harsh lesson. When you've been caught red handed, you need to take responsibility for the situation."

If Southampton do manage to keep Eckert in his job, then the question of whether the club really has learned that lesson will continue to be asked.