The Only Way Is Essex 's Junaid Ahmed says he’s had flings with famous footballers but has refused to name them.
The newcomer is set to appear in the new series of the reality show, which this summer is set on the Caribbean island of the Dominican Republic.
Junaid, who fans may recognise from Amazon Prime’s Lovestruck High, has raised eyebrows with tales about his love life, but said he won’t “kiss and tell”.
“I've dated footballers, on the downlow. A few footballers, a few reality people, but I don't kiss and tell,” he told The Sun.
He said he always gets “footballers sliding in my DMs” on social media, and has one demand when it comes to picking potential dates: they can’t be openly gay.
“I always get closeted guys - I have never dated a gay guy in my life. I am partial to a footballer, I do love them, it is such a taboo, though,” Junaid confessed.
He said it was “sad” how people still aren’t comfortable with who they are, and don’t want to come out for fear of abuse.
“I always tell them, I deal with abuse on social media on a daily basis, and it does not affect me in the slightest,” he said, as he revealed he tried to get his previous lovers to come out and accept their sexuality.
“I don't care about your skin colour or sexuality. If you're a nice person you're a nice person. If you are a d***head you're a d***head,” he simply stated.
Viewers are excited to see how Junaid will fit in with the TOWIE crew, as he is already firm friends with current stars Yazmin Oukhellou, Ella Rae Wise and Dani Imbert.
He admitted he had ruffled a few feathers as filming on the upcoming series began, and said despite being friends with Amber Turner, they’ve still managed to clash because they haven’t spoken in “so long”.
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