Gary Lineker tips Jermaine Jenas to be ‘good’ Match of the Day presenter
GARY LINEKER has tipped Jermaine Jenas to be the perfect replacement for him as the presenter of Match of the Day - when he retires.
The former Leicester star, 58, has been the face of the BBC’s flagship football show since succeeding the legendary Des Lynam in 1999.
Lineker started out earning his television apprenticeship in the same vein as ex-Spurs midfielder Jenas, with both starting their punditry careers on the Premier League highlights programme.
The former Barcelona, Tottenham and Everton striker has since taken over as Match of the Day's anchor, while also fronting BT Sport's Champions League coverage.
While ex-England international Jenas has also raised his media profile since retiring in 2014, appearing regularly on both BBC and BT as well as lending his voice to talkSPORT.
And Lineker is confident the MOTDx presenter could fill his boots on the main show whenever he decides to call it a day.
“He would be good,” Lineker replied to the Radio Times when asked about Jenas as his replacement.
“He [Lynam] was fabulously laid-back and smart.
“Des always used to say, ‘If you think of things that might be funny, go for it. Some people will like it, some won’t.’
"He told me, ‘So many presenters are bland’ and he taught me to be myself, have a bit of fun with it, be brave.
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“I thought, ‘I’m never going to be able to crack this’.
“I remember driving home thinking, ‘This is just too hard, too difficult.’ There was a lot of self-doubt.”
“I realise how lucky I’ve been. I’ve been given some kind of talent to play football and made the most of life since. I’ve been immensely fortunate.”
