Michael Owen has confirmed he won’t be entering the Love Island villa for the upcoming ‘Meet the Parents’ episode, revealing he has other commitments so will leave his wife to ‘do that duty’.
Owen’s daughter Gemma, 19, is the youngest member of this year’s cast, saying as she entered the villa: "I am open to finding love, I’m wanting to have a really fun summer. I was seeing someone and then that didn’t work out so I thought, 'Why not?'"
But while many people may have been excited to see her famous dad in the episode that sees parents visit the villa - which usually takes place towards the end of the series - the former Liverpool striker has revealed he'll be a no-show.
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Owen, who after retiring became a race horse breeder and owner, told Sky Sports' At The Races: "My wife will do that duty.
"I'll represent the horses and she'll represent the daughter."
He added that, while he had total faith in his daughter, he felt less sure about his horse Box To Box.
"I don't know what I'll get from Box To Box," Owen said. "But I know what I'm going to get from my daughter. I've fathered her for 19 years so I'm pretty sure what I'm going to get from her."
After entering the villa, Gemma quickly sparked conversations about her coupling up with 27-year-old Davide Sanclimenti - some people commented on the couple's age gap, while others suggested she was 'too young for a show of this magnitude'.
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But her dad came to her defence, telling the Daily Mail last month: "She has had two years more than I had to get ready for life in the public eye."
Owen continued: "Also, she’s a mature 19. She’s a bit like me in that regard. I was playing for Liverpool when I was 17, and having to make friends with 23, 24, 25-year-olds.
"The bottom line is, she’s an adult and I have to trust her to make sensible decisions."
Owen admitted he struggled to watch his daughter - the oldest of his four children with wife Louise Bonsall - sharing a bed with someone she hardly knew.
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"Luckily for me, there was no physical contact," he said.
"Gemma had her back to the guy. There was space between them. I thought, 'Good girl'.
"No father wants to see physical contact, do they? I certainly don’t.
"If there is physical contact I think I’ll be throwing something at the screen. I don’t want to see kissing. Do not make me see kissing!"
Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@themichaelowen/ITVTopics: Celebrity, TV and Film, Love Island