SOUTHAMPTON have offered a permanent job to Spygate intern Will Salt, according to reports.
Salt was told by Saints boss Tonda Eckert to spy on several Championship rivals, which ended in them being booted out of the play-offs and a Wembley final when he was caught filming Middlesbrough from behind a tree.
He revealed to an EFL panel that he did not have a chance to say no to the orders from manager Eckert, who retained his job at the club after being backed by owner Dragan Solak and releasing an eight-minute apology video.
But according to the Mail, Salt, 23, has now been offered a permanent role within the Southampton academy.
The full extent of the scandal – which saw Southampton booted out of the £200m Championship playoff final in May – was revealed in WhatsApp messages sent to Salt which put the intern “under extreme pressure”.
The written reasons for the expulsion revealed:
- Eckert was unhappy with the footage sent from Middlesbrough by the intern and had wanted him to travel a day early to spy.
- Senior analysts, the club operations manager and Eckert were all deeply involved in Spygate planning.
- Intern was told ‘You legend. Manager loved it’, after spying on Oxford United, who Southampton lost to.
- CEO Phil Parsons misled the EFL in his first response to the Middlesbrough allegations, claiming no senior staff ordered the spying missions
- Saints said they would “take ownership” of the situation but continued to argue points of the decision.
Southampton eventually apologised and admitted Eckert had ordered the spying against Oxford, Ipswich and Boro.
Details of the analysts spying were revealed by him using a personal bank card to buy a coffee right next door to Middlesbrough’s training ground.
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