Love Island star Montel McKenzie reveals when Alisha Lehmann romance blossomed & how Maya Jama became 'inspirational' in Baller League

McKenzie, who featured in the 2023 edition of Love Island, has been a regular in the Baller League UK ranks - gracing six-a-side competition at the Copper Box Arena in London that blends players of past and present with celebrity managers.

That competition will be returning in March, with McKenzie having previously formed part of MVPs United. They will not be returning for 2026, but were able to call upon coaching inspiration from Switzerland international Lehmann - who is back in English football at WSL side Leicester - and Love Island host Jama across two productive campaigns.

McKenzie has told the Daily Mail of working alongside two familiar faces: “All the managers, they actually have a head coach as well, that's somebody from a football background. Every team is different, but they take the training sessions and are more involved with picking the players.

“But the managers, obviously if you have an ex-pro they will add. Obviously, we had Alisha, she knows about football so she was giving her piece on how we were playing. Then if you have Maya, she's more inspirational, give us a little team talk before the game and boosts our confidence.

“It was sick. I knew Maya already from the show, but when they give you the energy on the sideline just giving you that push. Just seeing them there makes you play better. Tactically maybe not so much as they are not so involved. But their spirit on the sidelines was nice for us boys.

“All the managers, they don't want to feel like the character they are known for. They want to be a bit more serious. At the end of the day the players are taking it serious, so when your manager is messing around it doesn't set the right tone. After season one, I said I couldn't play for a manager pulling stunts. I'm genuinely there to win.”

That ambition saw McKenzie team up with Lehmann, and the pair are now united off the pitch. On when that partnership formed, McKenzie added: “Throughout most of the season, we weren't speaking. It wasn't like the whole season she was my girlfriend. It was more like halfway through toward the end.

“But definitely once we did start speaking, it made me play a lot better. Knowing that she was on the side, if I made a bad pass, I needed to get back and needed to go score. Naturally, it gives you that push like having a family member or friend watching.”

McKenzie has become a household name in his own right and once turned out for National League South side Hemel Hempstead. He is now on the books of seventh-tier outfit Folkestone Invicta, but would like to climb the pyramid in English football.

His appearances on Love Island and Baller League have made that tricky, with the 28-year-old saying of his sporting endeavours: “Initially, I thought it would help me because I thought there would be more eyes on me, or people would just be watching out for me more.

“But it actually didn't help me. A lot of managers didn't sign me because they thought, ‘Oh, he might not be serious about football’, so it kind of gives you a bad name in that space. You know, football, they don't really like the showbusiness of it, they want to keep it very football.

“It's the same with people who have personalities; they don't want people to show the other side of them. Which is why I think Baller League is so good because you can express your personality, do your celebrations, and talk a bit of smack. It just makes it a lot more fun for the players, and more enjoyable for the viewers as well.”

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