BBC journalist John Simpson says Gary Lineker is “a little to blame for the chaos” after the tweet caused a crisis

Veteran BBC journalist John Simpson has accused Gary Lineker of being part of the mess the company is in over the match-of-the-day presenter’s anti-Tory tweets.

The 78-year-old war correspondent said Lineker “must have known” that talking about the government’s immigration policy was going to be “difficult”.

Simpson, who presents his own Unspun World series, said he didn’t do it that way.

While the BBC and its director-general Tim Davie have been heavily criticized for their handling of the issue, Simpson suggested Lineker, 62, was not without blame.

Fellow presenters, pundits and commentators withdrew from last Saturday’s Match Of The Day after Lineker was dropped over the line.

John Simpson (pictured) accused Gary Lineker of contributing to the mess the company was in over the Match Of The Day host’s anti-Tory tweets

On Monday, the BBC said he would return this weekend, although he didn’t apologize for his controversial tweet. On Radio 4’s The Media Show yesterday, Simpson was asked if he agreed it was “BBC chaos”.

He replied, “Well, I think it was a mess.” At the urging of presenter Ros Atkins, he added: “Well I mean, to be honest I think Gary Lineker helped a little bit.

A lot of people will support exactly what he said about refugees… I wouldn’t have done it the way he did. I would have found other ways of expression.

“But… it doesn’t look good. It’s awkward. It’s really difficult and embarrassing. I just think it was a fantastic own goal.

“As I understand it, the government … has never exercised private pressure. [It] was something we did to ourselves.’

The 78-year-old war correspondent said Lineker (pictured) “must have known” that talking about the government’s immigration policy was going to be “difficult”.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk