Match of the Day viewers were met with a nasty surprise upon flicking to BBC One only to find a late broadcast of News at Ten tonight (Saturday). The last evening of the BBC Proms ran late, forcing the broadcaster to abandon their original schedule and move their flagship football highlights programme into a later slot. Another bumper day of Premier League action will have sparked excitement among supporters to tune in, with Gary Lineker and his punditry panel primed to take viewers through all the best bits. However, the last night of this year's BBC Proms - an eight-week series of classical music concerts - ran on later than planned. As a result, tuning in at Match of the Day's scheduled 10:30pm (BST) start time may have left viewers confused. A short clip of Lineker was aired alerting them that the show would begin 'after the news', which was introduced as 'later than billed'. And a group of football fans on social media were not best pleased. X user @jasperrssmith wrote: "Absolutely sickened that the proms have delayed match of the day." @AWoronieck9387 added: "Just give me match of the day, not the news, anything but the news!" And @CrownMiddleton moaned: "One of the few times I’ve stayed in on a Saturday night, get ready to watch Match of the Day and Last Night of the Proms has delayed it." While @Afc_El_ noted: "Match of the day should’ve started 7 minutes ago, fix up @BBCOne." The show's famous theme tune finally kicked in 18 minutes behind schedule, as Lineker opened with: "The Premier League returned after the international break, which lasted nearly as long as the Proms!" Stationed next to former Premier League stars Danny Murphy and Alan Shearer, the trio presented a host of mouth-watering contests. Saturday started with Manchester United outclassing Southampton 3-0 at lunchtime, and ended with Chelsea taking a smash-and-grab victory from Bournemouth courtesy of Christopher Nkunku's late winner. Two titles contenders players in the 3pm kick-offs, with Manchester City run close at home to Brentford and Liverpool surprisingly defeated at Anfield by underdogs Nottingham Forest. Aston Villa and Everton contested a thrilling 3-2 in which the Toffees surrendered a two-goal lead for the second game running. There was also room for draws between Fulham and West Ham, Crystal Palace and Leicester City, and Brighton and Ipswich Town.
Gary Lineker's Departure and the Search for a Replacement
The BBC are leaning towards having Mark Chapman as Gary Lineker's eventual Match of the Day replacement, as per reports. Lineker has been at the helm of the famous show for 25 years but his time is thought to be coming to an end. Lineker has previously clashed with the broadcaster over his comments on social media, which saw him temporarily suspended. The ex-England international also has other blossoming business interests and is one of the BBC 's highest earners, but his £1.35million-a-year contract expires at the end of the season. Previously Jermaine Jenas had been seen as a future replacement for Lineker with the former Premier League star once part of the BBC set-up. He was occasionally a pundit and hosted The One Show before he was axed by the corporation due to allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards female employees. As a result, the new frontrunner to take over from Lineker is Mark Chapman, according to The Times. He is already well known to fans given he presents Match of the Day 2 on Sundays, a role he's filled since 2013. The 50-year-old is also a presenter on Radio 5 Live and recently was announced as the presenter of the BBC's new Champions League highlights show.
A New Role for Chapman
That role is set to get underway next week when Europe's top clubs begin their midweek action. Chapman's new gig also underlines his status as one of the company's top presenters and will only aid his case to take over from Lineker. Another Match of the Day pundit in Frank Lampard is expected to be on the BBC’s Champions League highlights show. Lineker’s usual sidekick Alan Shearer is working for Amazon for its live games after it secured the rights to one match every Tuesday.
The Rise of Mark Chapman
Mark Chapman is the new frontrunner to succeed Gary Lineker as the BBC’s Match of the Day host. The 50-year-old, currently presents Match of the Day 2 on Sunday evening and also fronts the BBC’s sports coverage on Radio Five Live. Chapman has now been handed the main presenting role for the BBC’s Champions League highlights show, which begins next week. For the first time ever, the BBC will show match highlights from Europe’s elite club competition after agreeing a three-year deal with UEFA worth around £20 million. According to The Times, Chapman’s role now puts him as the leading contender to replace Lineker as Match of the Day’s host. The report claims that the BBC is still deciding on a successor for Lineker, whose £1.35 million-a-year contract expires at the end of the season. Jermaine Jenas had been one of the favourites to be the next Match of the Day host before he was sacked by the BBC last month for sending unsolicited texts to two female staff members. The former Tottenham, Newcastle United and England midfielder, who is a father-of-four, has said he felt ‘ashamed’ of his actions and that he was ‘deeply sorry’ for what happened in the lead-up to his sacking.
A New Era for Match of the Day?
The potential appointment of Chapman as Lineker's eventual replacement doesn't come as a surprise. Lineker, however, viewed the disgraced Jenas - whose marriage is on the rocks after his inappropriate work-related behaviour - as his eventual successor. The 63-year-old said last year: "Jermaine Jenas - who is probably drifting more towards my role. I think Jermaine is doing it really well as well, doing The One Show." When asked Micah Richards if he was nervous about Jenas replacing him, he replied: "Nervous? I'm ancient. My time is nearly up." Lineker was previously quizzed on how long he saw himself in one of BBC's top roles and said: "I don't... I don't know! Depends how long they want me, I suppose. I love doing it at the moment; I've still got another year left, at least." He went on to add: "All of these things will play a part. But I just feel it's been an absolute privilege to have presented it for 25 years now. I must be getting old!" Lineker's social media opinions have divided opinion and new rules were put in place for BBC employees following his saga, which saw him compare the Conservative Government to "1930s Germany". Chapman meanwhile has not posted on Twitter for four years.
