Hull City might take legal action just hours before the decision on Southampton’s expulsion is announced.
Hull City are chatting with lawyers as they think about taking legal action to move straight up to the Premier League, while waiting for Southampton’s appeal decision.
Just days before the Championship play-off final between Hull City and Southampton, surprising news came out that Southampton had been kicked out of the final because of a spying scandal.
Before the first leg of the final, someone from Southampton’s staff secretly watched Middlesbrough’s training to get ready for the match. Later, it was also found that Southampton had kept an eye on Oxford United and Ipswich Town’s training sessions during the season.
Because of this, Southampton was charged and found guilty of breaking EFL rules. That meant they were removed from the play-off final and given a four-point penalty for next season.
Unsurprisingly, Southampton have appealed this decision. Their lawyers will present their case to the appeal board on May 20 before the final call is made.
No matter what the EFL decides, it’s now clear that Hull City, who will face Middlesbrough in the final, are thinking about their own legal steps.
According to talkSPORT, Hull’s officials are checking with lawyers to see if they can be promoted straight to the Premier League because of Southampton’s removal from the final.
The club is unhappy about having to face a different opponent after spending a week getting ready to play Southampton at Wembley.
Hull’s players had a day off planned for May 20. If Southampton loses the appeal, that leaves them only two days to get ready for Middlesbrough.
The Tigers earned their place in the final by finishing sixth in the Championship and winning their semi-final matches against Luton 2-0 on aggregate.
If they get promoted, either through the games or in court, Hull will be back in the Premier League for the first time since 2017.
Hull’s owner, Ilicali, shared his frustrations about the whole situation and said the club is thinking about legal action.
“Normally, two teams reach the final, and one has been disqualified. Our lawyers think we should go straight to the Premier League, but they’re still looking into it,” he told Asist Analiz.
“We can’t say anything for sure yet. It’s a bit messy.
“We had been preparing for Southampton for 10 days. All our plans, analysis, and work were about them. Now, with only a few days left until the final, the opponent has changed.
“The players have a day off tomorrow, and Thursday will be the last serious training session. We’ll prepare for the new opponent with just that one session.”