‘It breaks my heart’: emotional Hellberg on spying row after loss at Southampton

• Middlesbrough coach accuses rivals of ‘disgraceful’ act

• Eckert insists Saints are taking allegations ‘very seriously’

Southampton’s head coach, Tonda Eckert, insisted the club are taking allegations of cheating “very seriously” after they advanced to the Championship playoff final against Hull at Middlesbrough’s expense amid the backdrop of so-called spygate. Shea Charles’s 116th-minute cross-shot sealed victory in extra time to earn a place in the Wembley showpiece on 23 May, but Southampton face the prospect of punishment from an independent disciplinary commission after being charged with breaching two counts of the English Football League’s regulations.

A visibly emotional Kim Hellberg accused Southampton of “disgraceful” behaviour after Middlesbrough’s defeat at St Mary’s as tensions escalated. The head coach reiterated that Boro believe a financial punishment would be inadequate. At one point, after Luke Ayling reported a discriminatory comment made by Southampton’s captain, Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Eckert appeared to agitate towards Hellberg on the touchline, only to be separated by the fourth official, Tom Nield, though afterwards Hellberg played down the incident between the head coaches.

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