BRITISH boxing legend Amir Khan says he “lost a good friend” after he publicly accused Anthony Joshua of having an affair with his wife.
Khan, 35, claimed in 2017 that wife Faryal Makhdoom, 31, was having an affair with Joshua and the pair were getting a divorce in a series of bombshell tweets.
The couple later reconciled, and AJ has always denied the allegations made against him.
And former world champion Khan has now spoken of his regret for the way he publicly called out Joshua.
The Bolton-born star admitted him and Joshua have “never spoken” since he the accusations.
Speaking about the incident on Gary Neville’s The Overlap, Khan confessed: “I had the problem with Anthony Joshua which I feel really bad for because at the end of the day I put him in the firing line for no reason.
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“I mean he was a friend of mine and since then we’ve never spoken. So I lost a good friend through that as well.”
When asked whether not speaking to AJ still affected him, Khan replied: “Yeah. The guy did nothing wrong and I kind of stuck it on him really.”
Khan said him and now wife of nine years Faryal were “not talking” at the time of the accusations in 2017.
Explaining the incident, he said: “What happened was, so my wife – me and her were not talking – and she sent a message saying ‘look so many fighters messaging me’.
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“And because she showed me a message of Anthony Joshua saying hi to her or something, I lost it.
“I said ‘Who the hell’s he, saying hi to my wife’, even though he was cool with me.”
Khan went on to say “nothing ever happened” between Joshua and Faryal, who he has three children with – Lamaisah born in 2014, Alayna in 2018, and Muhammad in 2020.
He said on AJ: “Maybe he was just being respectful, all he was was being respectful. Nothing ever happened.
“I just flipped out on everyone. And all my mates were ‘are you mad, you just tweeted something’.
“But he’s a nice guy. Even his own personal friends were calling me. I was like ‘no, don’t want to talk to you guys’.
Speaking of his regret, Khan added: “I become too selfish. I started making a lot of mistakes.
“I started turning nasty – becoming a bad person really. It was never me and I was never happy with myself doing all this stuff.”
In 2017 Khan took to social media to publicly accuse his wife of having an affair in a series of tweets.
He wrote: “Lol moved up in the weight classes lol. Trust me I ain’t the jealous type. No need to send me pictures of the men you’re talking to #Disgusted.
In another, he wrote: “Left my family and friends for this Faryal. I’m not hurt but another fighter. I’m making it public. You getting the divorce #Golddigger.
While one said: “Mans like Joshua can have my leftovers!”
Khan retired from boxing earlier this year following defeat to Brit rival Kell Brook.
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Joshua meanwhile is set to return to action on December 3rd in a mouthwaterimg clash against Tyson Fury.
The 32-year-old confirmed this morning that he has AGREED terms with the Gypsy King for a blockbuster showdown.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
