Middlesbrough and Southampton held out to a goalless draw, keeping the Championship play-off semi-finals on track to midway through.
Boro dominated much of the first leg at the Riverside Stadium, gaining the upper hand in the build-up following the alleged ‘Spygate 2’ but were unable to find a breakthrough.
The Saints had some big chances in the closing stages, but couldn’t score. As with another draw between Millwall and Hull, we head straight into the second leg.
Pre-game proceedings overturned due to ‘Spygate 2’ suspicions
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Tonda Eckert and Kim Helberg both answer questions about the ‘Spygate’ scandal ahead of the crucial play-off semi-final between Middlesbrough and Southampton
Kim Helberg pulled no punches in his pre-match interview after a member of Southampton’s staff was charged with breaching EFL regulations for allegedly spying on Boro’s training ahead of their play-off match against Thailand.
“Maybe!?” the Boro manager told Sky Sports before kick-off when the suspicions were raised.
“It hasn’t affected our build-up. We’ve done what we’re supposed to do before a game like this. We watched every Southampton game and tried to find solutions to beat them – the way they pressed, the way they built up. We spent every minute trying to get the advantage to win in the right way.”
“We’re motivated. We’re going to do everything we can to win the game. This is a new game. I believe in our players. We’re going to try to win a fair game.”
But after the match, Helberg was even more bullish, accusing Southampton of cheating in the post-match press conference.
Saints manager Tonda Eckert walked out of her own press conference when asked about the incident because she was asked too many questions about “Spygate 2.”
Boro have the upper hand in the first half but can’t break through.
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Middlesbrough came very close to converting their early dominance against Southampton into a goal when Tommy Conway hit an upright shot.
To be fair to Helberg, the first half was 45 minutes that summed up Boro. Intense, energetic, creative, but with no final product.
“I don’t remember a more one-sided game between two teams at the top of the table,” Jobi McAnuf told Sky Sports at half-time. “They’ll be very disappointed not to score.”
Daniel Peretz’s goals were sprinkled in from time to time, but they were unable to find a breakthrough. They had 17 shots on goal and only 4 on target. Southampton’s xG to zero is 1.39.
The biggest chance fell to Tommy Conway, who converted two big chances in the blink of an eye. The first was blocked on the line by James Bree, and the other swung off the far post as he tried to bend it into the far corner.
A frustrated Boro coach Kim Helberg added: “We had an outstanding first half against a very good football team. That was one of the best first halves I’ve seen since I’ve been here.”
“But we have to score goals and take the momentum from there. In the second half we were even. Maybe they have a better chance than us. That’s football. I’m very proud of the players and the supporters. I’m really proud of the whole 90 minutes.”
Saints miss chance for late win
Middlesbrough’s Riley McGree takes on Southampton’s Tom Fellows
It felt like a big chance was gone for Boro as Saints improved after the break and twice came close to scoring late on.
First, Taylor Harwood-Bellis headed in Ryan Manning’s free-kick, and substitute Samuel Edsey ran through on the counter-attack, but his shot went just wide of Sol Bryn’s goal.
Saints could have easily taken the lead in the second leg, as they were in the ascendancy for much of the match.
“The players were fantastic today,” Southampton manager Tonda Eckert told Sky Sports. “It was a great performance that gives us a lot of confidence heading into Tuesday’s game.
“I didn’t think so (we were lucky to equalize at half-time). We played a very good 90 minutes and had better chances, especially towards the end.
“We knew we were going to play a good team, especially at home with our supporters. We knew they had a lot of energy.
“They used up a lot of the ball in the first half and we knew the game would turn in our favor in the second half. We made some small adjustments, as always. We adapted very well and had many chances to win the game.”
Saint Lucky’s rags felt like a waste.
Tommy Conway misses three big chances to give Boro a valuable play-off lead
Analysis by Laura Hunter of Sky Sports:
This first run was more of a dry documentary than a spy thriller. The development of the game turned out to be much more interesting than the action itself. Southampton will think they are the big winners, even though the first half was one-sided and they created a number of chances but failed to score.
He fought back on the second run, but only created a mild threat. In the end, everything was rated PG.
In theory, this should lead to a full throttle return leg on Tuesday. There’s no need to be shy. Boro produced 21 shots on Southampton’s goal, and given they didn’t have the advantage, they’ll be kicking themselves – four went to Tommy Conway, who missed three big chances overall.
In a complete break from their recent form, the Saints failed to get a single shot on target and looked like a team succumbing to off-field distractions. Tonda Eckert spoke about the performance after the game, but the only thing he would have been happy about was the generosity of the scoreline.
The German has three days to understand why his team looked to be struggling so much in a game of this magnitude. Perhaps his team of analysts may have additional insight they can offer – that is, of course, if they aren’t too busy watching Boro.
