Gary Lineker recalls moment he pooed himself on the pitch in England’s opening game at Italia 90 

‘I fell to the ground, relaxed for a second and it just went BOOM’: Gary Lineker recalls THAT infamous moment he soiled himself on the pitch in England’s opening game at Italia 90

  • Gary Lineker was ill on the day of England’s opening game during Italia 90
  • He didn’t tell Bobby Robson so that could play against Republic of Ireland 
  • Lineker scored for England but later in the match pooed himself on the pitch

Gary Lineker has come clean after recalling how he pooed himself on the pitch during England’s opener at the World Cup in 1990.

The striker was ill on the morning of England’s Italia 90 opener against the Republic of Ireland, but decided not to tell legendary manager Sir Bobby Robson to ensure that he wasn’t dropped from the team.

Lineker suffered from cramps during the game and tried to hold on, but he lost control when he tried to stretch for the ball.

Gary Lineker has recalled the moment he pooed on the pitch during the Italia 90 World Cup

The moment happened when Lineker stretched for the ball and he was not long after taken off

The moment happened when Lineker stretched for the ball and he was not long after taken off

Speaking on a Match of the Day podcast, the host recalled: ‘I’d been ill overnight and it was the opening day of the cup and I’d woken up a few times with diarrhoea, etc.

‘I didn’t want to tell Bobby Robson because I thought he might leave me out of the team, and I wanted to play, as always.

‘Anyway the game started and I was alright, then about 20 minutes I started cramping. Somehow I made it through to half-time and I thought I’d be alright.

‘We go out the for the second half, we’re ten or 15 minutes in and I’m starting to cramp again and I think, ‘Oh, I’m in trouble here’.

‘The ball went left down the Irish left hand side and I ran across and tried to block something. I sort of fell to the ground and relaxed for a second and it just went ‘boom’.

‘It was like, ‘Oh my god,’ but it was everywhere. There’s a bit if you ever see the footage, where Gary Stevens comes over and asks what’s wrong.

Lineker scored four goals for England who were knocked out in the semi-finals at Italia 90

Lineker scored four goals for England who were knocked out in the semi-finals at Italia 90

‘And I go, ‘I’ve s*** myself’. I just didn’t know what to do. Thank god I had dark blue shorts on that day. I’m shovelling it out and rubbing myself on the grass like a dog. 

‘It was amazing how much space I found after that though, I was stinking.

‘In the end Bobby had to take me off, and I think Steve Bull replaced me and I went to the bench. 

‘Every ground pretty much had the dugouts right next to the tunnel, but on this ground, no, the two dugouts were the opposite side to the tunnel so I had to go and sit on the bench with all of the subs.

 

Lineker recalled the moment against Republic of Ireland during a Match of the Day podcast

Lineker recalled the moment against Republic of Ireland during a Match of the Day podcast

‘You could see everyone shuffling away from me whilst I sat on my own, feeling sorry for myself.’

England hero Lineker had a great World Cup, scoring four goals, including one against Ireland, to help the team reach the semi-finals of the tournament.

However their dreams were cut short, as they fell on penalties to eventual winners West Germany.

But for Lineker, his stinker against Ireland is almost as well remembered as his performances and the goals he scored.