Liam Payne admits becoming a dad at a young age 'spooked him out'

Liam Payne has opened up about how “difficult” it was for him to adjust to being a father because of his crippling self-doubts.

According to Heat magazine, the former One Direction star is set to talk candidly about his struggles in the upcoming one-off documentary Ant Middleton and Liam Payne: Straight Talking.

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"Becoming a dad at such a young age, it's such a difficult thing and I think I built fatherhood up so much in my head that it kind of messed me up to start with,” the Strip That Down singer, who was 23 when his then-girlfriend Cheryl gave birth to their son Bear, told the ex-soldier while on a trip in Namibia.

“I started in a bad place with it. I think it spooked me out early on, and I was just worried I would not be enough to look after the both of them,” he added.

"They're so important to me — Cheryl as well. 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.”

Payne first met Girls Aloud star Cheryl when he auditioned for The X Factor back in 2008.

The pair began dating eight years later following the breakdown of Cheryl’s marriage with French restaurateur Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, and eventually ended their romantic relationship in July 2018.

Addressing the split, Payne admitted to Middleton: "The one thing I was missing as a man in the relationship I had, was a level understanding about what she was feeling about stuff.

"I think I learnt through being away that, while I wanted to protect her, there's a big part of her that wants to protect me."

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During the chat, the Familiar singer also teased about that there’s always a chance he and Cheryl could get back together if “she played her cards right.” Although, he was quick to joke that he’d probably lessened his chances by revealing that on camera anyway.