Gary Lineker has been left "overwhelmed" after his Match of the Day colleagues decided to boycott Saturday night's broadcast in a show of solidarity after he was suspended from his presenting role by the BBC, it has been revealed.
The BBC announced on Friday that the 62-year-old would be 'stepping back' from his hosting duties after he "breached guidelines" by describing the government's new Migration Bill as "beyond awful" on social media.
However, the broadcaster's decision, which was not agreed upon amicably with Lineker, has prompted a major backlash from fans and his Match of the Day colleagues. Show regulars Ian Wright and Alan Shearer announced they would not be taking part in this weekend's broadcast - and plenty of others, including potential stand-in hosts and commentators, have since followed suit.
A new report from The Sun has now detailed how Lineker was left overwhelmed by the actions of his BBC colleagues after the decision was made to take him off the air.
A source said: “This has been a tumultuous 24 hours. Gary is in shock and had no idea this was coming. He wanted to go on air, make no bones about it, this was not his decision. Privately, everyone at the Beeb is in meltdown too. They genuinely don’t know how they will get a show out because no one wants to touch it.
“Everyone in the industry is appalled at how Gary has been hung out to dry, and the general BBC inconsistency. The support has been overwhelming which, essentially, is a massive pie in the face for the BBC.”
After various pundits announced they would not be appearing on Match of the Day following the decision to take Lineker off air, the BBC announced that Saturday's broadcast would not feature any punditry or a host. In a statement issued late on Friday night, the BBC said: “Some of our pundits have said that they don’t wish to appear on the programme while we seek to resolve the situation with Gary.
“We understand their position and we have decided that the programme will focus on match action without studio presentation or punditry.”
The Mirror has launched a petition to have Gary Lineker reinstated at the BBC and as the host of Match of the Day. Sign it here.
Shortly after that statement, the commentators who were scheduled to work on this weekend's show announced that they too would be ' stepping down' from Saturday's broadcast instead of providing commentary on the six fixtures that are scheduled to be shown.
And in another blow to the BBC, it has emerged that Premier League players have been in touch with The Professional Footballers Association (PFA) over boycotting their contracted media duties this weekend. The organisation has made it clear that they will support any players who decide they are unwilling to speak to the BBC either before or after this weekend's round of domestic matches.
