SAM Thompson was left squirming in his seat after best mate Pete Wicks grilled him about playing alongside Louis Tomlinson in Soccer Aid.
Louis and Sam’s ex Zara McDermott went public with their romance weeks after she split from the Made In Chelsea star.
Pete was trying to keep things light while chatting about this year’s Soccer Aid line-up on their podcast Staying Relevant, but brought up the elephant in the room.
Starting off innocently enough, Pete said: “Are you sure it’s not for Soccer Aid? How are you feeling? You’re playing again. Must be really exciting.”
He then added with a grin: “How do you feel about the line-up? Do you think you’ve got a strong team?”
Sam, clearly trying to keep things on track, awkwardly laughed and replied: “Got a really strong team.”
But Pete wasn’t about to let him off the hook that easily.
Pressing further, he asked: “Any kind of people in there who you’re looking forward to playing with?”
Still dodging the real question, Sam joked: “Loads.
“Tom Grennan. I’m really looking forward to playing alongside Wayne Rooney. Tyson Fury’s the manager. I can’t wait.”
Sensing the tension, Pete smirked: “I mean, that’s gonna be f***** amazing.
“Make sure you get him on side though, because you may need him in your corner in case you fall out with anyone.
“Not that you will, but just in case there’s any rivalries or anything.”
He added pointedly: “You know, you have to train together and it’s a lot, you know, when you’re kind of in close quarters with someone like that. All sorts gets brought up. Anyway…”
Sam is set to come face-to-face with the global pop star in just a matter of weeks on June 15.
Both Sam and Louis will be playing for England, which they have done in previous years.
Others also taking part include presenter Paddy McGuinness, singer Tom Grennan and Olympian Mo Farah.
It comes after The Sun revealed Louis and Zara were seen giggling and holding hands while they dined on £100 fish and chips on their date.
Sam and Zara, who appeared on Made In Chelsea together, struggled to paper over the insecurities and cracks in their five-year relationship, following a cheating scandal and family feuds.
The couple spent last Christmas apart, confirming shortly after that they had ended their relationship after "a tough year".
Even before their date, fans of Two of Us singer Louis were sure he’d become the new man on documentary-maker Zara’s roster.
