‘It moved me… it was beautiful’ – Gary Lineker reveals he cried over Wright and Shearer’s support amid MOTD storm
GARY LINEKER has revealed he shed a tear over Ian Wright and Alan Shearer‘s show of solidarity during his Match of the Day expulsion.
The presenter was pulled from hosting MOTD by the BBC earlier this month over his comments about the Government’s immigration legislation.
Wright and Shearer walked out in “solidarity” with Lineker, 62, who had compared the Government’s language around its small boats crackdown to that of 1930s Germany.
Several other BBC colleagues followed suit including Micah Richards, Alex Scott and Mark Chapman.
The Sun revealed how Lineker was reduced to tears over the support he received and the former England striker has now spoken about his experience.
In an interview with the Rest is Politics podcast, via The Times, he said: “It was funny. I was in a restaurant, and then in the back of the car, and firstly when Ian Wright pulled out of the show, and then when Alan did as well, Alan Shearer, and I must admit I had a tear in my eye.
“It was like ‘my goodness, I think they’re doing it more for the cause’, but to get that kind of team spirit, that kind of camaraderie and togetherness, I mean, it just moved me. It was beautiful.”
Lineker and Shearer were back on air a week later despite the former failing to apologise.
Shearer spoke about the situation, saying: “I want to say how upset we were that all the audiences missed out on last weekend.
“It was a really difficult situation for all concerned.
“For no fault of their own some great people in TV and radio were put in an impossible situation.
“It’s good to get back to some sort of normality and talk about football.”
Lineker responded: “I echo those sentiments.”
Wright labelled the fiasco a “hot mess”, saying: “Obviously it’s been a bit intense.
“But I said on the podcast before it all kicked off, it’s a perfect distraction. It’s a perfect distraction from what really matters, and for me they made a hot mess I’m telling you.”