Unbelievable? Reports that Le Tissier, Thompson and Nicholas have been axed from Soccer Saturday

Matt Le Tissier on Sky Soccer Saturday

Matt Le Tissier, Phil Thompson and Charlie Nicholas have reportedly been axed as core panel members of Sky's popular Soccer Saturday show. 

That would leave Paul Merson as the only Soccer Saturday regular panelist to survive the cull, along with host Jeff Stelling.

Le Tissier has already confirmed his departure on Twitter.

He said: "Enjoyed my time at Sky Sports, time to look forward to life’s next challenge, thank you for the support down the years and special thanks to the backroom team which include @CazzaEccles @CarlyBassett @tvtrevstats amongst many others, good luck all have a lovely day."

Enjoyed my time at sky sports, time to look forward to life’s next challenge, thank you for the support down the years and special thanks to the backroom team which include @CazzaEccles @CarlyBassett @tvtrevstats amongst many others, good luck all have a lovely day 😃👍🏼

— Matt Le Tissier ✝️ (@mattletiss7) August 26, 2020

Regular Soccer Saturday reporter Chris Kamara replied:

"Good luck Tiss it’s been a pleasure working with you."

Phil Thompson also confirmed he has left the show: "I’ve had a great 22 years with @SkySports. Enjoyed every minute with some amazing people on the show and behind the scenes which made it the iconic show it is today.

"Good luck to Sky, Jeff, Merse and the new gang on @SoccerSaturday."

With Premier League matches given staggered kick-off times at the end of last season, due to games being played behind closed doors, the Soccer Saturday show had lost some of its status as the centrepiece of Saturday afternoon viewing.

Le Tissier had also attracted some criticism recently for his outspoken views on the UK government's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.