Gary Lineker told he 'didn't have the right' to say what he said about Gareth Southgate

Martin O'Neill has taken a swipe at Gary Lineker for his critique of England and Gareth Southgate's performances at Euro 2024. In the latest piece of backlash against Lineker, Premier League veteran O'Neill said the pundit didn't have the right to make such comments given he's never managed.

Ex-England striker Lineker, 63, has faced a barrage of criticism for his disparaging remarks about England's campaign in Germany, labelling Southgate as "tactically inept" following the 1-1 draw against Denmark. And O'Neill argued the BBC pundit should have exercised more caution in his remarks.

In a recent episode of Clive Tyldesley's 'The Football Authorities' podcast (via The Mirror), the former Aston Villa and Republic of Ireland boss offered a unique take on the issue. Initially, O'Neill seemed to support Lineker's right to express his views before offering a more balanced perspective.

"First of all - why go into the studio as a pundit if you're not prepared to say what you see and feel? That's true," said the ex-Northern Ireland international. "However, I do think that, having been a manager, I have a lot of empathy for managers. Especially those who are striving - perhaps even against the odds - to achieve results [and] may not have the resources other managers have. And I believe you should show some empathy, because you've been in their shoes before."

The 72-year-old clarified England are certainly not one of those teams lacking in resources. However, he did agree with his host's question about whether one can label a manager as "tactically inept" without having any coaching experience themselves.

"I think so. In fact, I know so," he said. "You're accusing someone of being incompetent at their job when you've never experienced it yourself. You've never actually fielded a team. You've never taken responsibility for a side. Every single misplaced pass seems to [put blame on the manager].

"You can criticise a team's performance; there's no doubt about that. England were very poor [against Denmark]. But to call someone tactically inept - I think that's going too far. Especially since you've been on the playing side. You've been instructed by the manager to perhaps adopt a different tactical position, and I think you should have some empathy with this particular manager."

The two-time European Cup winner went on to say he "absolutely" felt criticism took more of a toll when it comes from a former player rather than journalists. Furthermore, he claimed that such criticisms were even harder to swallow when they came from ex-players who were "basement dwellers" during their playing careers.

For former England, Barcelona, Tottenham and Leicester striker Lineker - who netted a whopping 48 times in 80 international outings - that tag doesn't fit. However, England star Harry Kane also struck back in light of his recent comments by encouraging English pundits to "build the team up" instead of criticising them.

Lineker had expressed his disappointment with Kane and England's performances during the Euros on his podcast, 'The Rest is Football'. However, he managed to work in a joke about the criticism when speaking live on TV Tuesday night ahead of Italy's draw against Croatia: "If Albania fail to win tonight, England are officially through to the last 16. Because even if they lose tomorrow they will go through as one of the best third-placed teams. I wish people would stop being so critical of them."

Following Spain's victory over Albania, England secured their place in the next round irrespective of their result against Slovenia on Tuesday evening.