LONDON, March 22, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Former Nottingham Forest and England defender Stuart Pearce has returned to work as a football pundit for the first time since his health scare.

The 62-year-old spent five days in a Canadian hospital earlier this month after experiencing chest pains during a flight from the United States.

Pearce's flight from Las Vegas to London's Heathrow Airport was diverted to St John's in Canada where he received treatment.

But he has since made a complete recovery and was present at Wembley on Friday for broadcast duties covering England's World Cup qualifier against Albania.

"I just got a virus. It sort of attached itself to my heart and just needed clearing, rebooting, I think," Pearce told talkSPORT radio before the match.

"At the end of the week, on Friday, they (the doctors) said, 'look, we're going to stick a tube down your throat, if there's no swelling around your heart, we'll stop your heart and reboot you again'.

"So that's exactly what they did. My heart went back to a normal rate and they released me the following day.

"I've got to say I've been very humbled by the messages across football and everything.

"The (aircraft) crew on Virgin were brilliant, they took care of me fantastically and then said, 'look, we're not going to take the chance travelling across the Atlantic, we're going to drop you off'."