Gary Neville has mocked the BBC's decision to "apologise" to Gary Lineker after the Match of the Day presenter was reinstated to his position on Monday morning.
The 62-year-old was taken off air ahead of Saturday's show while the fallout from his tweets criticising the government's small boats policy was dealt with. The decision sparked anger from the public and saw the likes of Ian Wright and Alan Shearer also pull out from their punditry duties.
Match commentators also withdrew from the show as BBC's coverage was plunged into complete chaos. Football Focus and Final Score had to be scrapped, while MOTD lasted just 20 minutes on Saturday evening.
However, the BBC and Lineker have come to an agreement with the former England striker set to be reinstated ahead of the FA Cup quarter-finals this weekend. In the process, Director-General of the BBC, Tim Davie issued an apology regarding Lineker and his position.
He said: “Everyone recognises this has been a difficult period for staff, contributors, presenters and, most importantly, our audiences. I apologise for this."
"Impartiality is important to the BBC," Davie added. "It is also important to the public. The BBC has a commitment to impartiality in its Charter and a commitment to freedom of expression."
Following the announcement, Neville appeared to criticise the BBC for the nature of their apology in a social media post. Straight after the decision was made, the Sky Sports pundit tweeted "Apology" with two laughing emojis.
In response to a comment that said: "One of the bravest things you can do in life is apologise", Neville replied: "You think this lot would apologise if they didn’t have to. They took on football and got beat up again. I’m talking about the government who are at the heart of all this nonsense. They wanted to silence someone who is damaging them on a daily basis.."
He also retweeted Lineker's post as he announced he would be coming back onto the BBC's screens. Lineker posted four separate messages, where he thanked everyone for their support.
Lineker said: "After a surreal few days, I’m delighted that we have navigated a way through this. I want to thank you all for the incredible support, particularly my colleagues at BBC Sport, for the remarkable show of solidarity. Football is a team game but their backing was overwhelming.
"I have been presenting sport on the BBC for almost 3 decades and am immeasurably proud to work with the best and fairest broadcaster in the world. I cannot wait to get back in the MOTD chair on Saturday.
"A final thought: however difficult the last few days have been, it simply doesn’t compare to having to flee your home from persecution or war to seek refuge in a land far away. It’s heartwarming to have seen the empathy towards their plight from so many of you.
"We remain a country of predominantly tolerant, welcoming and generous people. Thank you."
This also follows a petition by The Mirror to get Lineker reinstated into his role - which saw 210,000 readers sign up. Mirror Editor-in-Chief Alison Phillips said: "We were overwhelmed by the number of people who joined the call to have Gary Lineker reinstated and the strength of feeling of so many.
"We believe that popular strength of feeling in support of Gary Lineker sent a clear message to the BBC which had come under huge pressure from those on the right who wish to silence those with a different viewpoint to their own."
