Gary Lineker makes TV return after BBC saga and immediately delivers cheeky line

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Gary Lineker's first line on TV following his Match of the Day axing was exactly what you'd expect as he gave a typical cheeky response.

Lineker, who was reinstated by the BBC earlier this week after his suspension threw their sport's coverage into disarray, made his broadcast return on Viaplay this evening (March 17) to preview Sunday's El Clasico as part of their La Liga coverage.

Before he got into talking about former club Barcelona's clash with Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, presenter Semra Hunter asked him how his week's been.

READ MORE: Biggest football TV scandals ever – from Gary Lineker axing to Keys and Gray sexism

"Really quiet, nothing much going on," the 62-year-old sarcastically replied, prompting laughter from both of them.

He then continued: "Yes, you could say it's been an interesting week but I'm still here, still punching.

"It was interesting and also hugely gratifying, I had an amazing amount of support from my friends and colleagues which was quite beautiful actually.

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"It was totally disproportionate, the whole thing. But we're okay, it's resolved, I'm relieved, I'm back to work tomorrow and all is well with the world."

Lineker isn't actually scheduled to host the MOTD Premier League highlights programme this weekend as he'll be on location for the BBC's FA Cup fixtures – Manchester City vs Burnley on Saturday and Brighton vs Grimsby Town the following day.

As is standard procedure on such weekends, MOTD2 anchor Mark Chapman will be stepping in for him.

Lineker was suspended last week for comparing language in the government's new asylum policy to that "used by Germany in the 1930s".

The vast majority of colleagues stood by him and boycotted their usual duties last weekend, forcing BBC director general Tim Davie to perform a U-turn.

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• Gary Lineker
• BBC
• Premier League

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