Jamie Carragher and Kate Abdo were involved in an awkward exchange over her relationship with her boyfriend during CBS Sports’ Champions League coverage.
The pair were pitchside at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night alongside Thierry Henry and Micah Richards, when Carragher suggested Abdo should wear the Arsenal shirt he had been asked to put on.
Earlier in the show from Arsenal’s clash with Porto, the former Liverpool defender got Richards to don the shirt after the latter revealed he grew up supporting the Gunners.
But at the end of the shootout, it was Carragher’s turn to wear the shirt after being asked to do so by Bukayo Saka in his post-match interview.
Carragher then suggested Henry and Abdo should be next to wear the Arsenal jersey on air, sparking a bizarre comment from the former Liverpool defender.
‘You [Henry] can wear it next and for the last part [of the show] you [Abdo] have got to wear it,’ he told his colleagues.
‘No, I’m loyal,’ Abdo swiftly replied, before adding ‘to Manchester United thank you very much’, when asked by Carragher whom she was loyal to.
‘You’re not loyal to Malik,’ the former Liverpool defender fired back, referencing Abdo’s boyfriend Malik Scott.
The joke appeared to go down like the proverbial lead balloon with the CBS host, who replied: ‘What? How can you even say that?,’ while Henry and Richards smiled awkwardly.
Carragher then attempted to explain the comment, noting that Scott ‘hasn’t had a mention on the show tonight.’
Abdo recently announced she is in a relationship with Deontay Wilder’s boxing trainer Scott, after months of her CBS Sports on-screen colleagues playfully teasing her over the subject.
It also comes after the fact that Arsenal legend Henry is often the subject of light-hearted mocking on social media where fans joke that he has a crush on Abdo, and his reaction to finding out about his ‘work wife’s’ new relationship earlier this month sparked a hilarious reaction online.
The CBS Sports anchor previously saw the name of her partner revealed on air by Carragher and Richards in December last year, after having made jokes about the presenter’s new relationship during broadcasts since the start of the season.
During CBS’ coverage earlier this month, Carragher asked Abdo how she had enjoyed a trip to Alabama before adding: ‘Are we going to meet Malik?’
And last week, Abdo revealed her partner wants to officially tie the knot.
Speaking to The Athletic this week, the presenter revealed the off-the-cuff nature of CBS’ coverage was what made it so special.
‘The freedom to be off-script [is why it works], the freedom to be our authentic selves,’ she said.