Kara DioGuardi has insisted that she was not drafted onto the American Idol panel last year to replace Paula Abdul.

“The way I’m understanding it is that it was her choice to leave,” she told show host Ryan Seacrest’s radio show. “I never was here to replace her. It would be impossible to replace Paula Abdul.

“She’s an incredible talent. She is somebody who helped make the show as big as it is. How could you ever replace that?”

DioGuardi added: “It’s such a loss for the show, such a loss for the contestants. She’s definitely the heart of the panel.”