Jermaine Jenas: Gemma Owen's Love Island stint may not be ideal career step

Gemma Owen's 'Love Island' stint may not be an "ideal" career move, according to Jermaine Jenas.

The 19-year-old star - who is the daughter of footballing legend Michael Owen, 42, and his wife Louise Bosnall - is currently taking part in the hit ITV2 reality dating show, but Michael's fellow football pundit Jermaine has admitted that if it were his own daughter, he would have "concerns" over the media scrutiny that comes with taking part.

He said: "I’m not stupid enough to say, 'I’d be fuming.' One thing I’ve learned growing up in dressing rooms is that if you say, 'I don’t want my daughter to do this,' all that does is push them away. want all my kids to be honest with me. If my daughter came to me and said, 'I want to go on Love Island,' I would probably voice my concerns because of the scrutiny involved. But if she thinks she can handle it, I would say, 'Go and enjoy yourself, as long as you know what’s coming'."

However, the former Tottenham Hotspur player - who has daughters Geneva, nine, and Olivia, five, as well as son Jacob, eight, with wife Ellie, and has daughter Sancha, 14, from a previous relationship - admitted that Gemma has "done well" on the show so far, but explained that her chosen route to success may not be the most "ideal".

He told OK! magazine: "From what I’ve seen, Gemma has done well and I think some people on social media have been too harsh. She might go on to do great things and this might be her first step towards doing that – and it might not be the ideal step but it might be a step. But obviously, when I see Michael there will be a bit of winding up!"

‘Love Island’ airs tonight at 9pm on ITV2 and ITV Hub. Episodes are available the following morning on BritBox.

The dating reality show can be seen in Ireland on Virgin Media Two and Virgin Media Player.