Gary Lineker said it was “great to be here” as he returned to the BBC after he was forced off-air last week in a scandal over his comparison of the government to the Nazis over its use of language regarding asylum seekers.
The Match of the Day star returned to the screen to present live coverage of the FA Cup quarter-final between Manchester City and Burnley this evening, having been suspended last week over his comments.
As the pre-match coverage began, Mr Lineker’s co-presenter Alan Shearer addressed the row, saying “how upset we were about all the audiences who missed out” after Match of the Day went ahead with no presenters.
He went on: “It was a really difficult situation for everyone concerned. Through no fault of their own some really great people in TV and radio were put in impossible situations and that wasn’t fair.
“It’s good to get back to normality and talk about football again.”
Mr Linker said: “I echo those sentiments.”
