[ad_1]
Matt Le Tissier has admitted that he was ‘wrong’ over his tweet spreading conspiracy theories about Russia’s massacre of civilians in Bucha, Ukraine, on Wednesday.
The former Premier League star, 53, was heavily criticised this week after appearing to suggest that the media have lied about the unfolding horrors in eastern Europe, which have seen thousands of people killed and millions become refugees.
The Southampton hero retweeted a post from an account named Unity News Net, which claimed the atrocities in Ukraine had been falsified by the media after ‘weapons of mass destruction’, ‘Covid’ and ‘the Hunter Biden laptop’. Le Tissier captioned his tweet ‘This’, with a finger-pointing emoji down to the Unity News Net post.
Grisly images of what are claimed to be civilian massacres allegedly carried out by Russian forces in Bucha before they withdrew have stirred a global outcry in recent days, and prompted Western nations to expel dozens of Moscow’s diplomats and propose further sanctions, including a ban on coal imports from Russia.
US president Joe Biden lambasted Vladimir Putin as a ‘war criminal’ and described the killing of civilians in Bucha as a ‘war crime’.
Following the backlash to his tweet, Le Tissier quit as an ambassador at Southampton football club on Wednesday but stopped short of apologising for spreading conspiracy theories.
However, the former midfielder has now admitted his tweet questioning the truth over the events in Bucha was ‘the wrong thing to do’.
Speaking to Saintsplus, Le Tissier said: ‘The point that I was making (was) I could have chosen a better example.
Matt Le Tissier has admitted sharing tweet spreading conspiracy theories about Russia’s massacre of civilians in Bucha, Ukraine, was the ‘wrong thing to do’
Le Tissier, 53, angered fans after spreading conspiracy theories about the Bucha massacre
On Twitter, Le Tissier retweeted a post suggesting the media have ‘lied’ about certain events
‘That’s why I deleted the tweet.
‘The point I was trying to get across, I didn’t use the right example to get that across and it came across the wrong way which is my mistake. I should have thought that through better.
‘That’s why I chose to delete the tweet and apologise for it.
‘It’s very emotive and it was the wrong thing for me to do. I see that now but it doesn’t change the point I was trying to make, I just used the wrong example.’
Le Tissier also insisted he was acting in Southampton’s best interest by stepping down as a club ambassador.
The former midfielder announced on Wednesday that he was stepping away from his role as an ambassador of his former club, Southampton
Pictured: Bags containing bodies of civilians, who residents say were shot by Russians troops
A visibly emotional President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the devastation in the war-torn town
‘I’ve always wanted what’s best for Southampton Football Club,’ he added. ‘Since the age of 16 that’s all I’ve wanted and looking at it rationally it was the best thing for me to do to take the hassle off of Southampton Football Club.’
He also revealed that his Twitter usage will ‘fizzle out’ as he exchanges the social media platform for ‘alternative’ free-speech app Gettr.
On Wednesday, Le Tissier had used Twitter to address his decision to quit his role as an ambassador of Southampton.
He tweeted: ‘To all the fans of SFC. I have decided to step aside from my role as an ambassador of SFC. My views are my own and always have been, and it’s important to take this step today to avoid any confusion.
‘This does not affect my relationship with and love for my club, and I will always remain a fan and supporter of everything Saints. I can, however, see that due to recent events it’s important to separate the work I believe in from my relationship with the club I have supported and played for most of my life.
‘I will see you all at St Mary’s and will always do anything I can to help the club.’
Le Tissier played 270 times for Southampton in the Premier League, scoring 100 goals. He also played eight times for England. He continued his football career in the media and was a long-standing Sky Sports pundit before he was axed in 2020.
Earlier on Wednesday, in response to his tweet about events in Ukraine, Le Tissier wrote: ‘Let me make something very clear I do not advocate war in any way shape or form I do not advocate anyone taking lives of others and anyone who commits such acts should be dealt with accordingly, any atrocities leave devastating effects on the families of the victims and us all.’
Le Tissier played 270 Premier League games for Southampton and scored 100 goals
Le Tissier tried to distance himself from his posts by saying he does ‘not advocate war’
In a number of quick-fire dismissals Le Tissier and fellow Soccer Saturday pundits Charlie Nicholas, Phil Thompson and Scott Minto were all let go by the broadcaster in August 2020.
Le Tissier had previously used his Twitter platform to spread Covid-19 vaccine conspiracy theories. He has over 570,000 followers.
Last November, The Times reported that Le Tissier’s posts were being shared by Premier League footballers who were hesitant about getting vaccinated.
And now he has admitted that his controversial views at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic – which has caused almost 170,000 deaths in the UK – ‘probably ended up with me losing my job at Sky.’
In a number of quick-fire dismissals, Le Tissier (second left) was let go by Sky in August 2020
Le Tissier has used his Twitter platform to spread Covid-19 vaccine conspiracy theories
Le Tissier re-shared an image which had been posted by a user in response to a video showing a police officer challenging a member of the public on a train about the failure to wear a protective mask
Le Tissier has also been involved in a string of other controversies on social media.
He once re-shared an image which had been posted by a user in response to a video showing a police officer challenging a member of the public on a train about the failure to wear a protective mask.
The image used showed holocaust victim Anne Frank, with words above which read: ‘The people who hid Anne Frank were breaking the law. The people who killed her were following it.’
[ad_2]
Source link
Have something to say? Leave a comment: