What sort of punishment could Southampton be looking at if found guilty as presumably it’s going to be more than just a fine if they have added rules since the Leeds spying issue? I mean is it really worth the risk if getting caught means some quite severe punishment heading your way.
It could only be a much larger fine or potential points deduction if it's intended to be more severe than the punishment Leeds received, but the former is pretty much irrelevant if Southampton get promoted and the latter can't be enforced now the playoffs are set.
Unai Emery is probably going to win the Europa League with Sevilla, Villarreal and Aston Villa.That’s like some kind of Football Manager save goal to succeed with all the teams with “Villa” in.— Justin (@juza_23) May 7, 2026
🚨 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚: Bournemouth have left out Alex Jimenez from their squad list for this weekend's game vs Fulham.This comes after screenshots were leaked in which he supposedly messaged a 15 year old. pic.twitter.com/Jx2dLxfSjq— The Touchline | 𝐓 (@TouchlineX) May 8, 2026
Yes he is. 🚨🇨🇩 Jorthy Mokio has made his decision: he will represent Congo DR national team and not Belgium. pic.twitter.com/JIfEYNO26g— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 8, 2026
Bruno Fernandes has been named as the Football Writers' Player of the Year for 2026. Congrats, Bruno👏 pic.twitter.com/heHqKlgx6I— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) May 8, 2026
I mean the details on this are quite bad. Destined to be linking up with MG at Marseille next season.
This doesn't look good for Southampton. The bigger question is whether this was a one off, or something they've been doing for a while. 🚨 Telegraph Sport can reveal the full details of the alleged attempt to steal Middlesbrough training-ground secrets ahead of Saturday’s play-off against Southampton:🔺 The “spy” had professional surveillance equipment, complete with a microphone to record voices and technology… pic.twitter.com/rXdxgY6KEj— Telegraph Football (@TeleFootball) May 8, 2026
Wow! That´s a decision I think not many players in his position and age would be willing to make but good for him I guess. On the other hand, that´s a very damning sign for Belgium imo losing yet another one of their top prospects to an African nation that´s not Morocco, not even mentioning European nations. And very early signs but seems like Eboue isn´t interested in representing them either so far despite not yet being eligible for England in competitive matches. This might be a stretch but could Belgium losing so many duals have something to do with their history/national identity (or rather lack thereof!) where a very significant amount of people don´t view themselves as Belgians but rather Dutch in combination with not having won a title?
Something seems to be happening. They losing players to countries that normally take a long while to get players to switch.
Southampton charged. Given that the EFL are looking to expedite this it feels like more than a fine is under consideration. BREAKING: Southampton charged with breaching EFL regulations after allegation of unauthorised filming of Middlesbrough's training session prior to play-off first leg 🚨 pic.twitter.com/bINZWc0gCs— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) May 8, 2026
I'm not really sure that the game tomorrow should be going ahead given this. There's plenty of time to reschedule both legs before the final.
Statement from Southampton - https://www.southamptonfc.com/en/news/article/club-statement-8th-may-2026 That's a lawyers statement. If they had done nothing wrong it would be along the lines of ".....deny the charges and offer our full cooperation in clearing our name". I guess the EFL will be hoping for a big Boro win tomorrow, as they can then easily deal with it over time. If they don't do anything quickly, Southampton win the play-offs, and are shown to have been doing this for months then there'll be a whole load of law suits from impacted parties.
Ah yes, the old "throw someone under the bus" excuse. I doubt this will hold up. 🚨Exclusive: Southampton accept ‘spying’ charge but claim analyst acted alone🎥 “Spy” caught with professional surveillance equipment🙏 Saints hope “lone wolf” defence satisfies EFL💷 Range of punishments open@LukeEdwardsTele has the full story: https://t.co/SyhUrmW6EE pic.twitter.com/bdfV499yYG— Telegraph Football (@TeleFootball) May 9, 2026
Can´t understand Bayern going for players like Gordon and now De Katelaere as both are notably below the required level if they are serious about wanting to win the CL next season. To be fair, they have quite some players below this level in their squad already; it´s enough to win the Bundesliga but when you need options off the bench against the best teams everyone will notice their shortcomings.
It's puzzling to me, especially when they said they're only going to be signing top talent from now on and focus on their academy development. With Gordon, I can only imagine it's an attempt to maximise Kane's final years. As well as being a threat in behind Gordon will press and defend like a mad man and make up for Kane's deficiencies in that regard. At least in certain Bundesliga games I can imagine Bayern playing them both together in the middle.
Chelsea must be kicking themselves over losing Ngumoha. They've spent billions (with leveraged debt) on a squad of players who for the most part, wont even recoup what they originally spent/invested.
Given the first half performance, I think Southampton would have been better focusing on their own training sessions rather than MIddlesbrough's.
So it’s quite possible the title and relegation are both decided by VAR. Could be a bold way for it to bow out if it is axed. Luck is not on West Ham’s side in this relegation battle.
Arguments against technology in football put to bed. An incident which has biggest impact ever on PL title and relegation. Firstly - ball over the line. Ref’s watch alerts. Then, despite the magnitude, VAR reaches correct decision. In the olden days… #whufc #thfc #afc #mcfc— Rob Dorsett (@RobDorsettSky) May 10, 2026 Him and Henry Wjnter are swimming against the tide I think there. Most of the media is backing any club willingly to do an Wolves and start the vote to remove it. If the authorities want VAR to not someday cause a major riot they need to at least drop the clear and obvious which is never followed. Otherwise someday fans somewhere will snap and it will be bad,
God bless all the Championship clubs that voted against introducing VAR, by the way 🙏— Nathan Salt (@NathSalt1) May 10, 2026 Mark Bullingham likely promised FIFA he’d get the challenge system into it to trial it going by how he went on about it and I don’t think one Championship club said anything but never never never. Be interesting to see what Mark Bullingham says next time he talks about VAR. If he tries to get into it the FA cup earlier rounds and still falls it would be humiliating.
A six-minute VAR delay with 25 replays to decide which of the multiple set-piece wrestling manoeuvres was clearly and obviously worthy of punishment. A fittingly decisive moment for the 2025-26 Premier League season.— Colin Millar (@Millar_Colin) May 10, 2026 So fascinating to come on here and read the endless debate.I’m just the guy who pays a hundred quid to actually go the game and be left totally in the dark. It’s so shit. It’s killed something brilliant. It has to go.— Tom Peck (@tompeck) May 10, 2026 The IFAB needs to mandate that as soon as VAR is declared the officials are fully on camera and on the screens in the stadium. Everyone at cricket and rugby knows what is going on because it’s fully transparent, If clubs don’t want to put a screen up then tell them they can’t play matches at that stadium till they do. And put a timer on screen so everyone knows exactly how long each decision took.Ive seen people saying 3/4/5/6 mins for today’s decision. I think through by the time West Ham come back up (I don’t have much hope of miracle) it either be gone or radically changed (Challenge, Time Limits, Full Communication, No Screens with the VAR official having the final say Rugby style). Funny that Darren England has been the official in the biggest VAR stories the PL has had,