Thom Evans says Nicole Scherzinger is "lovely" as he tried to play down romance rumours.
The \'X Factor: Celebrity\' contestant has been linked to judge Nicole during his time on the show, and the rugby ace was teased by Try Star bandmates Ben Foden and Levis Davis as he opened up about the speculation.
Appearing on ITV\'s \'Loose Women\', Thom said: "Look, Nicole\'s lovely but I\'ve been concentrating on the bromance... I just want to get to the finals, all my focus is there."
The daytime chat show\'s panellists - Christine Lampard, Nadia Sawalha, Rochelle Humes and Jane Moore - didn\'t seem totally convinced.
He added: "Who wouldn\'t want to date Nicole? She\'s lovely."
Ben quipped: "Who wouldn\'t want to date Tommy? Because he\'s lovely."
Thom\'s comments come as he admitted a potential romance had crossed his mind, but he admitted they "don\'t have much time" because of the competition itself.
He told the MailOnline: "She\'s stunning. And has [romance] crossed my mind? Yes. But we don\'t have much time.
"To be honest, we are focusing on the bromance and getting to the final! We are working on choreography, vocal lessons, and it\'s all so full on. So there\'s not a lot of time for much else."
And the romance rumours have come after reports the pair have felt a spark since meeting on the show.
An insider previously said: "They both want to focus on the series for now though, and then see what may or may not progress once the show has wrapped. But Nicole deserves to meet someone lovely and everyone is hopeful this will work out."
