Middlesbrough V Southampton: Championship Playoff Semi-final, First Leg – Live

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Starting lineups: Injured Hackney misses out

Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney has not recovered from a calf wounded successful clip to beryllium progressive for this 1 – he’s not moreover connected nan bench.

Middlesbrough XI (3-4-3): Brynn; Ayling, Fry, Malanda; Brittain, Morris, McGree, Targettl Whittaker, Conway, Strelec
Subs: Wildsmith, Gilbert, Browne, Silvera, Castledine, Hansen, Ibeh, Sarmiento, Hunt

Southampton XI (4-2-3-1): Peretz: Bree, Harwood-Bellis, Wood, Manning; Downes, Jander; Fellows, Azaz, Scienza; Larin
Subs: Long, Stewart, Quarshie, Archer, Edozie, Charles, Matsuki, Welington, Bragg

Preamble

Hello and invited to Spygate 2.0. The buildup to this Championship playoff semi-final has been dominated by accusations that Southampton person been peaking done nan bushes astatine Middlesbrough’s training crushed this week – Saints person now been charged pinch misconduct by nan EFL and will look an independent disciplinary committee “at nan earliest opportunity”. The nine person said they will beryllium afloat cooperating pinch nan EFL passim nan process. Shades of Marcelo Bielsa, Leeds and Frank Lampard’s Derby successful 2019 for sure. We’ll get into nan weeds, aliases brambles, of that shortly.

It will surely make for 1 hellhole of an ambiance astatine nan Riverside this lunchtime arsenic Middlesbrough big Southampton successful nan first limb connected nan roadworthy to Wembley and nan Premier League, pinch nan return fixture astatine St Mary’s connected Tuesday. Kim Hellberg’s Boro saw their push for automatic promotion slice distant successful nan last weeks of nan play while Saints person surged up nan array nether nan 33-year-old Tonda Eckert and came adjacent to breaking into nan apical 2 themselves.

Fetch your binoculars for kick-off astatine 12.30pm (BST) and get successful touch via email arsenic nan action unfolds. Team news will follow.