Le Tissier called out Sky over Carragher “spitting” incident when they axed him

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Former Southampton captain Matt Le Tissier claimed he demanded to know why Jamie Carragher was still employed by Sky Sports, after the channel sacked him in August 2020.

The iconic Premier League midfielder was relieved from his pundit duties on Soccer Saturday, alongside fellow pundits Charlie Nicholas and Phil Thompson. At the time, it was a move which prompted huge backlash and anger from loyal viewers.

Le Tissier has previously spoken about his dismissal, claiming he was ushered out of the door due to his controversial opinions about lockdowns and other measures used to combat the Coronavirus pandemic.

But the ex-England international provided a glimpse into the conversation he had with Sky Sports producers, stating he asked why Liverpool legend Carragher was still employed by the company after he was filmed spitting at a car which contained a 14-year-old girl.

"Within five seconds I was told there was no more work for me at Sky,” Le Tissier said on ‘The Rob Moore podcast’. “I had about seven months left to run on my contract but I was told that I wouldn’t be needed anymore.

“They didn’t really give a particular reason, they just said ‘the show was going in a different direction’, they were the words I think they used. So I asked the question, does this have anything to do with my posts on social media?

“To which their reply was, ‘well we have to take into account the reputation of the company when making these decisions.’ At which point I said ‘oh that’s interesting, because at the moment, you are employing somebody who spat at a girl from his car’.

“Jamie Carragher, who spat at a young girl through his car. They suspended him for six months and then brought him back into the fold. I said ‘do you not think that might have harmed the reputation of the company at all’ and I got told ‘we can’t talk about other people on this’ so that was it really.”

Carragher apologised for the incident which was caught on camera after Liverpool lost 2-1 against Manchester United in the 2017-2018 Premier League campaign. As well as issuing a public apology, he also personally reached out to the family to apologise for his actions – a deed which resulted in the parents of the 14-year-old child urging Sky not to sack him.

Fortunately for the ex-defender, he was introduced back on to the Sky Sports panel for the following campaign in August, and has been providing analysis and co-commentary ever since.

Daily Star Sport has reached out to Sky Sports for comment.

• Jamie Carragher
• Premier League
• Liverpool FC
• Sky
• Southampton FC

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