Simon Cowell won't pressure One Direction to regroup after their upcoming long break, according to The Spectator.

The music mogul revealed that he wasn't surprised when the 'Steal My Girl' singers approached him and discussed with him about the possibility of a long break for them next year.

"I've known for a while that they were going to take this year off. They had to because of their workload," Simon told BANG Showbiz.

The X Factor judge has worked with the band since 2009, but he believes that they should settle things on their own, he said, "I did what I've always done with the guys and said you make your own decisions and I hope you stay together, but you've got to want to do it yourself so they're smart guys they'll work it out."

However, Cowell hopes that after the group enjoys their long break, they will still reunite but not because he put pressure on them, but because they want to be a band once more.

He explained during the launching of the new series 'The X Factor' at the Picturehouse Central cinema in London, "I hope so, but like I said, it's not going to be because of any pressure from me."

"It really has to be, like we said in the beginning, this is an opportunity, you won it, and I've always had that attitude with them. They're nice guys and they're loyal so it'll be fine," he added.

And when asked if the boys were overwhelmed by their success, he said, "Of course. Look, even though they're young, that is a grueling schedule and after a while I could see they were exhausted, so when they said, 'How do you feel about it?' I said, 'Do whatever you want."

While One Direction fans are unhappy with the boy's decision, Simon thinks long break is necessary for them.  

"Having a year off is going to be a healthy thing."