FA must end the Tonda Eckert saga with Saints boss facing up to a six-month ban

FA bigwigs need to stop faffing about — and bring an end to the Tonda Eckert spygate saga. It has been almost THREE MONTHS since the EFL threw Southampton out of the play-off final against Middlesbrough while slapping them with a four-point deduction this season. Tonda Eckert is facing a six-month touchline ban from the FA over spygate Credit: PA A Southampton fan mocked Middlesbrough supporters but it was his club that was booted out of the Championship play-off final days later Credit: Getty Yet the new campaign kicked off this weekend with the Saints boss still awaiting the outcome of an additional FA investigation. And the German could face a potential touchline ban of six months. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Eckert responded to the new charge of bringing the game into disrepute weeks ago — travelling to London to answer questions directly from disciplinary officials. So why on earth are the FA still dragging this process out? The EFL disciplinary commission took 11 days from initially charging Southampton for snooping on a Middlesbrough training session to meting out the unprecedented punishment. You have to wonder why it took TWO MONTHS for the FA to even decide to throw the book at Eckert in the first place? Surely once Southampton were expelled from the play-offs, the dark suits at Wembley should have charged him within days if they felt there was a case to answer. Call me cynical — but is it because some of them were on a jolly at the World Cup with England instead? Most read in Sport SUN VEGAS WELCOME OFFER: GET UP TO £100 BONUS Southampton intern Will Salt observing Middlesbrough’s training session It does seem interesting the charge only landed a couple of days after the Three Lions returned from the tournament with all the hangers-on. What Eckert and Southampton did was wrong. It goes against integrity and fair play. But I’m afraid that word left football a long time ago. There is reasonable mitigation to what Eckert did, which although does not exonerate him does at least explain his actions — however unpalatable. When Will Still was appointed Southampton manager last summer, he was given a full, official breakdown of EFL and FA regulations. But when Eckert was promoted from his role as under-21s head coach following Still’s sacking in November, nobody at the club or governing body sat the German down to explain the finer points of EFL rules. That was an administrative howler from the club. The Middlesbrough incident didn’t start as some elaborate military operation. It began with the analysis team idly discussing whether Hayden Hackney was fit to play in a staff meeting. When someone pointed out Boro’s training ground was right next to a public golf course, a decision was made to send young intern Will Salt over to have a look. Having spent years coaching in Germany and Italy, where observing an opponent’s open-air sessions is standard practice, Eckert claims he did not realise the EFL had unique restrictions. I accept that. There’s not another league in European football that has such a rule. Even here, in the Premier League, National League and non-league, there is no regulation restricting it. The FA themselves do not spell out that observing another team ahead of a game is prohibited. EFL bigwigs only wrote it into their rules when Leeds were caught snooping on Derby in 2019. The FA did not charge Leeds or their then manager Marcelo Bielsa after the EFL hit the club with a fine for breaking “good faith” regulations. Yes, the EFL rules changed — but the FA’s didn’t. So what makes this case different? Eckert has been found guilty of spying on three clubs — Middlesbrough, Ipswich and Oxford — as opposed to ex-Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa admitting he spied on EVERY opponent! Once the Argentine gave his epic briefing to the media showing how he did it, there was an acceptance that this was a coach who simply did not understand English football culture. In fact, most people found it entertaining rather than being outraged. And because he was not even punished — although he paid the £200,000 fine the club received out of his own pocket — it did not seem a big deal — especially on the continent. Then there is putting things into perspective. Chelsea admitted 74 breaches of FA agents rules — and were only slapped recently with a £10m fine, minor by Premier League standards. Not even a single point was docked — and no ban from being involved in the game from any of the parties responsible. Eckert has spent the summer making sure he understands all the rules and has accepted what he did was wrong. The punishment of stopping what could have been promotion to the Premier League was massive. The points deduction added further salt into those wounds. It is time to move on and let the young coach get on with his career — and Southampton to focus on getting back to where they belong. Who didn’t eat all the pies? WHO ate all the pies — or, in the hospitality boxes at Wolves on Friday, who didn’t? The club put on some lovely steak & ale offerings — and vegetarian options — during their Championship opener against Blackburn. Yet I was aghast to see several trolleys with trays almost full of uneaten pies in the corridors at Molineux. One of the guilty parties was the box belonging to returning Molineux hero Raul Jimenez. So it was a case of ‘No, senor.” Perhaps the Wolves fans should reword the lyrics of their famous song to .. “Our Number 9 … pass him a pie and he’ll leave it behind!” Two trollies outside Raul Jimenez’s box with loads of uneaten pies Burnley watering hole The Turf seem to accept the Championship is where they belong! Back where they belong … BURNLEY punters at The Turf next to the stadium appeared to have accepted Premier League exit in the good spirit. Prior to their Championship opener with fellow relegated club West Ham, a flag was flying proudly above the entrance, which read: “Burnley, No Nay Never … Back where we belong!” Comment now