Former X Factor winner Sam, 38, suggested that 22-year-old Zayn is going through a rough time and Perrie, also 22, is better off being away from it all.
Speaking to the Daily Star, Sam said: "I think Perrie will find someone better. You have to think she has had a lucky escape.
"I thin Zayn is a bit of a bad boy who is going off the rails a little bit and Perrie can do a lot better."
Referencing Zayn's One Direction fans, she added: "There's a million kids who probably want to kill her for going out with 'their Zayn'."
News of Perrie and former 1D singer Zayn's break-up came just weeks after it was reported they'd bought a £3 million mansion together.
Perrie is currently in America with Little Mix, as they promote their latest single Black Magic, and it's been claimed that she will break her silence over the split when they appear on James Cordon's The Late Late Show.
A source told the Mirror: "James has got a way about him, a cheeky way, where he is able to coax gems of information out of people.
"If anyone can get Perrie talking, it's him. The girls are going on the show as part of their month long tour of America and by then Perrie will be in much happier spirits."