Football broadcaster Gary Lineker arrives forward of the English Premier League soccer match between Leicester City and Chelsea, on the King Power Stadium, in Leicester, England, Saturday, March 11, 2023.
| Photo Credit: AP
Gary Lineker rose to fame as a goalscoring hero for England at World Cups earlier than changing into the main face of sports activities broadcasting for the BBC over the previous twenty years.
The 62-year-old was informed by the publicly-funded British broadcaster to “step back” on Friday from his function presenting its flagship soccer highlights present “Match of the Day” because of an impartiality row.
Lineker criticised the British authorities’s new asylum coverage this week, evaluating the rhetoric used to that of Nazi-era Germany.
Born in Leicester in 1960, Lineker realised his boyhood dream by turning skilled along with his house city membership.
He scored over 100 targets in six years on the Foxes and was later honoured as a Freeman of the City of Leicester.
But his goalscoring prowess at a aspect not competing for trophies on the high of the English recreation noticed him snapped up by then champions Everton in 1985.
In only one season on Merseyside, Lineker was once more the league’s high scorer as Everton narrowly missed out on a league and cup double to native rivals Liverpool.
World Cup highlight
The 1986 World Cup was to take Lineker’s profile to a brand new stage.
His six targets, earlier than England bowed out to Argentina in a massively controversial quarter-final, noticed him win the Golden Boot forward of Diego Maradona.
“Before then, although I’d done well at Leicester and had a great season at Everton, I could still just about go about my business,” Lineker informed the journal Four Four Two.
“But after that first World Cup, I couldn’t go anywhere without being jumped upon – it was a different world.”
His performances caught the eye of Barcelona, who paid a princely sum on the time of £2.8 million ($3.4 million) for his providers.
Lineker spent three years on the Camp Nou and was christened with the nickname “El Matador” for his predatory ending.
On the sector he received the Copa del Rey in 1988 and Cup Winners’ Cup a yr later, however the spotlight of his time in Catalonia was a hat-trick in a 3-2 win over Real Madrid in 1987.
Lineker can be a fluent Spanish speaker because of his spell at Barcelona and presents dwell matches for La Liga TV’s English channel.
He returned to England in 1989 as Tottenham beat out Manchester United for his signature and eventually received a trophy in English soccer when Spurs lifted the 1991 FA Cup.
In between there was extra World Cup heartache in 1990 as regardless of Lineker’s 4 targets, together with one within the semi-finals, England misplaced within the final 4 to Germany on penalties.
The ultimate stage of his membership profession was a brief stint in Japan with Grampus Eight earlier than retiring in 1994.
‘Second to none’
An increase to the highest of the sports activities broadcasting then started with appearances as a pundit BBC radio and TV.
He took over as host of Match of the Day in 1999 and in addition fronted BBC protection of different main occasions akin to Olympic Games.
In a press release on Friday, the BBC described Lineker’s sports activities presenting as “second to none”.
He is the company’s highest paid presenter with an annual wage of £1.35 million, in accordance with figures printed final yr, regardless of working as a freelancer reasonably than a BBC worker.
As a participant, Lineker boasted an impeccable disciplinary document as he by no means obtained a yellow or purple card throughout his 16-year profession.
But his need to talk out on political issues has made him rather more troublesome for BBC bosses to deal with because of the company’s committment to impartiality.
Lineker has hosted refugees in his house and in 2016 criticised remedy of refugees within the UK as being “hideously racist and utterly heartless”.
In a public spat with the BBC’s cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew in 2018 over tweets in regards to the Brexit course of, Lineker posted: “I’ll continue to tweet what I like and if folk disagree with me then so be it.”
That stance reached breaking level this week, however the esteem with which Lineker is held by his colleagues has proved an additional headache for the BBC hierarchy.
One by one main pundits and commentators have pulled out of Saturday’s Match of the Day in a present of solidarity, leaving one of many BBC’s landmark reveals in disarray.
Source web site: www.thehindu.com
