Liam Payne’s close friends have rallied to his defence after rumours of adultery began to circulate on social media.

For those who are unaware, the charges sprang from Payne’s blossoming friendship with Instagram model Aliana Mawla.

Friends claim the former One Direction singer ended his relationship with former girlfriend Maya Henry “a while ago” and even called off their engagement “so it’s really not fair that he’s being made to appear like a cheater.”

The friend made this admission to well known magazine and was quoted saying, “He’s a sensitive guy so of course, this is upsetting but at the end of the day the people in his life know that truth and know his heart is good.”

For those unversed, no news of the split has been made public, but the singer was spotted walking hand-in-hand with the Instagram star at Heathrow Airport in London on May 24th.

The model also showed up in Liam’s video collaboration with J Baldvin, titled Familiar.

However, that is not the sole culprit behind cheating allegations, a now-deleted comment on Instagram fanned the flame where she admitted, “I love all of the fans so much but please stop sending me these pictures of my fiancé wrapped around another woman.”

“This is not me and it’s hard enough knowing this has happened without seeing it. Enough now.”