Liam Payne 'never stopped loving Cheryl' as Simon Cowell's brother shares 'pain'

Liam Payne and the former Girls Aloud singer sadly broke up in July 2018, but Tony Cowell, who was reportedly friends with the pop icon, said he "never stopped loving" her

Liam Payne "never stopped loving" Cheryl despite the former couple parting ways back in July 2018, Simon Cowell's brother has claimed.

The One Direction star tragically died last week after falling from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, Argentina. An investigation into the singer's death is ongoing, with a post-mortem examination determining that he passed away from multiple injuries.

Former Girls Aloud singer Cheryl met her future boyfriend when she was a judge on the X Factor. Liam, then 14, was auditioning as a solo singer, with Liam memorably giving her a cheeky wink during the performance.

Cheryl, who had son Bear with Liam, was married to footballer Ashley Cole at the time of the ITV show. However, years later when Cheryl was 32 and Liam was 22, they started dating as One Direction took the world by storm.

Sadly, the couple split up in July 2018, with Liam saying in a documentary titled Ant Middleton and Liam Payne: Straight Talking that he had issues understanding what Cheryl had been going through as a new mother.

However, Simon Cowell's brother, Tony Cowell, who was reportedly friends with the pop icon, told Closer magazine that Liam "never stopped loving" his former girlfriend.

Tony said: "I also feel for Cheryl, as I know Liam never stopped loving her and Bear. It's going to be so difficult for her. I can't imagine her pain. Louis Walsh is devastated too. He told me, 'Liam had this star quality about him. I will miss him'."

Although he'd moved on after his relationship with Cheryl, Liam said on the documentary that at the time, she was still the most important person in his life.

"She's one of the most, if not the most, important people in my life. I'm lucky I have someone who understands what I'm going through," he shared.

She previously claimed that Liam was the only man who hadn't cheated on her and explained to the Times that once One Direction broke up, he wished to "settle down and have a family".

Cheryl also revealed that the singer struggled to switch from pop star to dad as his career continued to soar. The former couple reportedly remained on amicable terms, with Cheryl previously saying that they had "no animosity".

Liam and Cheryl also attempted to keep Bear away from the limelight, with the Girls Aloud star revealing to British Vogue that she wanted her son to enjoy a "normal childhood".

During an interview from two years ago, Liam said: "Time with Bear has been really, really great, honestly. More than anything I want to say thank you to him and his mum for giving me a little bit of freedom to go and get well in that moment because I had to."