Avram Grant calls out Gary Lineker for staying ‘silent’ following devastating Hamas attacks on October 7 and instead tweeting about Tottenham – as Israeli ex-Chelsea boss insists ‘my respect is GONE’ for BBC presenter

• Israeli manager Avram Grant was deeply critical of Gary Lineker’s ‘silence’ 
• The former Chelsea boss claimed the BBC presenter had a ‘double standard’ 
• DOMINIC KING: I don’t understand what football is anymore – It’s All Coming Up 

Former Chelsea manager Avram Grant has sent an emotive message to Gary Lineker, claiming he has lost respect for the former England international turned presenter. 

Grant, born in Israel in 1955, was deeply critical of Lineker for a perceived lack of comment on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas in the 68-year-old’s home country, specifically in the wake of the October 7 attacks.

Lineker is known for being outspoken about topics beyond football, having come in for criticism from some parties for his comments on the UK Government earlier this year. 

However, in a video monologue, Grant called out Lineker for failing to condemn the violence against Israel and accused the presenter of having ‘a double standard’. 

‘I have a message to Gary Lineker who I respected a lot as a football player, but to be honest, that respect is gone,’ Grant began. 

WARNING – GRAPHIC CONTENT BELOW 

Gary Lineker claimed that he has lost respect for Gary Lineker for a perceived lack of comment

The BBC presenter was also accused of having a ‘double standard’ by the former Chelsea boss

Your browser does not support iframes.

‘I follow Gary, he comments about everything, he even said that the current policy of the UK Government reminded him of the policy of the German government in the 1930s. I know about this policy, my father suffered for this policy, my grandfather, my grandmother was murdered because of the policy of the Germans. 

‘The only thing that is close to his is what happened on October 7. What happened, I cannot even describe. There was no reason, there was a peaceful environment in the Middle East. 

‘But they murdered and butchered children, they beheaded people, raped women and burned them alive, cut open women and took (unborn) children out of their stomachs and killed them. They took hostages. 

‘I’ve never heard of such things in my life, and what did you do? Silence. Nothing. I think you even said that Tottenham is first place in the league. That’s what was important for you. So you have a double standard.’

Grant’s reference to ‘October 7’ is to the deadliest attack in Israel in decades after more than 250 people were killed by Hamas at a festival before further attacks in the south of the country. 

Since then there has been a bloody conflict ongoing between the two sides that is thought to have claimed the lives of a reported 11,000 Palestinians, included a believed 4,500 children. 

An estimated 1,400 Israelis are thought to have been killed, with the majority of those deaths coming in the initial incursion on October 7.

Grant then picked out Lineker’s comments on the plans to hold a pro-Palestinian march on Armistice Day, in which he criticised Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s claims that such an action would be a ‘hate march’. 

‘You said it’s not a march of hate,’ Grant resumed. ‘Do you know the headline of this march is “from the river to the sea”? It means 10 million Israelis, to get rid of them, to put them on the sea. What is it if it’s not hate?

Grant was critical of Lineker for tweeting about Spurs going top of the league on October 7

The attacks on October 7 have sparked a bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas

The conflict is thought to have claimed the lives of around 13,000 people from both sides

‘I know that it’s not all of them, I know that the majority of them do not agree with this, so they need to get rid of this headline. This is the policy of Hamas, not the Palestinians. 

‘The policy of Hamas is to kill, destroy and not build anything. The policy of Israel is security. The policy of the good Palestinians that I know is to have quality of life and they deserve it. The policy of Hamas is to destroy even them, you don’t need to believe me, the head of Hamas said “it will not be the 7th of October, we will repeat it again and again”.’

Grant then insisted that ‘nobody’ has more regret for the situation in Palestine than him, but claimed that the only way to return the nation to a ‘paradise’ is to remove Hamas. 

He issued a further call for the events of October 7th to be prevented from ever happening again at all costs. 

Lineker has been approached for comment. 

Grant had been critical of the FA’s decision not to light up the Wembley arches in solidarity with Israel for the friendly clash with Australia – England’s first international since the attacks in early October. 

‘The FA have let themselves down. Absolutely, 100 percent,’ Grant exclusively told Mail Sport.

‘When they look in the eyes of their children they will have nothing to say. I don’t need the FA to condemn, it won’t bring one child’s life back.

‘The FA was wrong. The leaders that don’t condemn are putting politics over humanity.’

Grant – currently at the helm of the Zambian national team – had issued a message to England head coach Gareth Southgate, following a perceived failure to condemn Hamas’ attacks. 

Southgate had expressed ‘extreme sadness’ for the loss of life as a result of the conflict in October. 

‘Hi, I have a message to Gareth Southgate, who I respect a lot as a person and is a very good coach,’ the 68-year-old said. 

Gareth Southgate was also criticised by the Zambia national coach for a perceived failure to condemn the Hamas attacks

Grant claimed that Palestine can return to its ‘paradise’ state’ if it can remove Hamas

‘I saw your statement. You don’t have to choose sides. Also, you can choose sides to condemn what we saw in the videos – children without heads, girls that got burned alive, old women, that I can not even speak about this. You just need to be a human being.

‘If my brother will do it, I would condemn this, I wouldn’t accept it. I know a lot of Palestinians, they are my friends, they even come to see football from Gaza, from West Bank, from everything. Good friends, they come to watch football.

‘They say they don’t agree about this, but they don’t accept these brutal murders. They don’t, they call me. They say it’s not Islam and I agree. I know Islam very well. Islam is a wonderful religion, they love people, they’re very polite.

‘So you can stand in your point but still condemn these brutal murders of children, girls and all people. You have to do that, it’s for humanity.’ 

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

Your browser does not support iframes.

Source: Read Full Article