Is Gary Lineker right to call England 's***'? Mail Sport asks football fans whether the ex-Three Lions captain's criticism is fair

England fans have been left divided in over whether Gary Lineker's recent criticisms of Gareth Southgate's side were fair after the BBC Match of the Day host branded the Three Lions performance against Denmark 's***'.

Lineker made the brutal one-word verdict on his podcast, The Rest is Football, following England's 1-1 draw against Denmark. It came after he had also taken aim at Harry Kane, claiming the England captain needed 'to do a lot better' during BBC's post-match analysis of the game.

'I mean, you can think of all sorts of words and expletives if you like, but it was s***,' the 63-year-old said on The Rest is Football podcast.

'Was it tactically inept? It's really hard to be critical of Gareth Southgate because, overall in the England role, he's turned England's fortunes around in many ways.'

But what do the fans think of Lineker's analysis? Ahead of England's Euro 2024 against Slovenia on Tuesday night, Mail Sport's Aadam Patel has been asking supporters in Cologne whether they think the BBC pundit was right or wrong to call England's performance 's***'.

One fan stated he was split over the former England forward's comments, adding that on one hand that it is the BBC presenter's job to offer up analysis on England but added that he also empathised with the players.

'I see it both ways. It's his job to criticise the players... but also I see it from the player's perspective - they want to win at all costs,' the England supporter said.

Another interjected, appearing to disagree with the fan, claiming that because Lineker did not win the World Cup with England, he didn't have a leg to stand on.

'I see it slightly differently,' the supporter said. 'I don't see Gary Lineker holding up his World Cup winner's medal? Do ya?' 

'I think sometimes you have got to believe in the team, it's all very well criticising from a position where you haven't done it yourself. But come on, you've got to get behind them.'

When asked whether that was his message to Lineker, the fan added: 'Yeah, my message to Gary is get behind the team. Until you can hold up your winner's medal get behind the team.'

Kane had also fired back at Lineker's comments, stating that former players have a 'responsibility of being an ex-England player' and implied they should understand what it was like to 'wear the shirt'. 

'But what ex-players or ex-players who are pundits now have got to realise is it is very hard not to listen to it now, especially for some players who are not used to it or some players who are new to the environment,' Kane said, hitting back at the BBC pundits comments, during a press conference on Monday. 

'I always feel like they have a responsibility. I know they have got to be honest and give their opinion but also they have a responsibility of being an ex-England player that a lot of players look up to that people do listen to them and people do care what they say.'

Meanwhile, other fans have concurred with Lineker's verdict, stating: 'He's right we have been s***.' 

He added: 'Gary Lineker is right, we've been s***, but we're going to get better. Round of 16 here we come.'

Another fan added: 'I think, with all the pundits, the performances haven't been good. I listen to Simon Jordan on the radio all the time and he says it as it is. You basically have to take the praise happily enough but when you're not playing so well there has to be some traction coming the other way.

'We have played well, we have qualified and fingers crossed there may be some positive comments coming out. I hope we progress and get better from here on in.'

'I think he's got a right to his opinion, as we all do. Lots of us have different opinions about many different things. I heard Stuart Pearce on the radio earlier today and he said he'd drop Kane, stood by it and double downed on it. And why not.

When asked whether he would drop Kane, the fan added: 'I think I would today, because I think although we need to win the group because we don't want to play the Germans too early. But to be honest I'd play 3-5-2 and play Kane and Watkins.'

Lineker, who scored 48 goals in 80 appearances for the Three Lions, had actually jokingly banned Micah Richards from using the phrase 'it's coming home' on BBC's coverage last week, but one England supporter urged him to start using the phrase.

The fan said: 'If Gary Lineker has called England s***, he needs to take a look around himself and start saying it's coming home!'

'Look around us, it's coming f***ing home,' he added before laying out his tactics. 'If you play [Kobbie] Mainoo in the six, [Declan] Rice in the eight, [Phil] Foden in the 10 and [Anthony] Gordon in the 11, it's coming home. I promise you it's coming home.'

England fans were in fact taunted by Danish fans ahead of their clash last Thursday with the Denmark supporters singing, 'England, England, it's never coming home.'

And one England fan believes if Gareth Southgate's side continue to turn out performances as they did against Denmark and Serbia, it certainly won't be coming home.

'I'll be honest, I hope we do win the Euros. But on the last few performances, I think we're going home. I don't think it's coming home, I think we're going home.'

Lineker's comments have been a hotly debated subject over the past few days, with the ex-England forward insisting that journalists were to blame for his spat with Kane.

Speaking alongside Alan Shearer on The Rest is Football podcast, Lineker, who said that he wants nothing more than to see England perform at their best, said: 'You know what happens Alan, it's happened to you and it's happened to me over the years. 

'You sit there as a player and it's your turn to face the press and at some point a journalist says "so and so has been critical of you" and you know they've not heard it.'

'We've talked about this on this podcast before about journalists not being brave enough to ask their own questions.

'I guarantee whoever asked that would have probably been critical himself. I think they do it A) to stir the pot and B) because they're too scared to ask the questions themselves.

'I get it and it puts Harry on the spot, but I thought he answered it fine with one or two bits in there, but it's not easy answering a question like that.'