Zayn has been apparently taking digs at the band. In one interview he branded the band's music "generic as f**k".

Asked if he thinks some of what Zayn has said has been disrespectful, Tomlinson told thesun.co.uk: "Yeah, I do. But I can understand it. We have a lot of situations where we're sat in interviews and if you're in a certain mood you might run your mouth.

"The older you get the more you can tell if these things actually carry any malice or if they're just a prod in the back. That's life, innit? Sometimes people chat s**t and that's the reality."

Tomlinson is not ruling out resolving their differences in the future, but not any time soon.