Gary Lineker deleted a tweet on Sunday night (July 31) after the Lionesses beat Germany in the Euro 2022 Final. After 56 long years of waiting for England to scoop a major trophy, Sarina Wiegman's side came out on top at Wembley Stadium after Chloe Kelly scored an extra-time winner.
The nation celebrated and expressed their support for the Lionesses, with many partying and taking to social media to show their gratitude for the team. On Twitter, many football fans celebrated Manchester City striker Kelly in particular, praising her for her winning celebration.
After checking to see if the goal stood, Kelly wheeled away with her shirt off, whipping it above her head wildly and exposing her sports bra in an instant iconic moment of football.
Following the final whistle, former England striker Lineker wrote a tongue-in-cheek comment. He tweeted: “The @Lionesses have only gone and done it, and Kelly is England’s heroine, bra none.”
However, his tweet ruffled a few feathers, with some taking exception. Some suggested that it was “most unwise” whilst others accused the Match of the Day host of “casual sexism”. Following that backlash, he revealed that he deleted the tweet as many had missed the context of his comment.
He wrote: "It was just a play on words given the celebration. I do rubbish like that constantly on here, including on men’s football. I’ve deleted it as many people didn't see the game so missed the context."
Overcoming the backlash, Lineker then followed that up with another tweet, once again toasting the Lionesses’ success but this time by using an infamous quote of his own from the aftermath of Italia 90 that had been slightly altered. He wrote: “Football is a simple game. 22 women chase a ball for 90 minutes and, at the end, England actually win. Congratulations @lionesses. Fabulous.”
Kelly herself has since commented on her celebration at the national stadium and hinted that it was her effort to copy Bobby Zamora - the former England man striking the winner for QPR during the 2014 playoff final. It has been compared to that of former USA star Brandi Chastain's memorable celebration after she netted the winning penalty in the 1999 World Cup Final.
Speaking after the game, she said: "I said to my family, the one moment that I’ve been to Wembley and it’s been brilliant – it’s the Bobby Zamora moment with QPR.
"I said to my family this morning, imagine we get a Bobby Zamora moment and it’s me… and now it’s happened! Bloody hell!
"Unbelievable! This is what dreams are made of!"
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