Why Did Davide & Ekin-Su Break Up From Love Island? She Was ‘Blindsided’

Lea Veloso
·6 min read

If you keep up with the lives of couples after they appear in the Villa, you might be wondering why did David and Ekin-Su from Love Island UK breakup?

Davide Sanclimenti and Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu were crowned winners of Love Island UK Season 8 back in 2022. “It feels so surreal finding the man of your dreams and just growing,” Ekin-Su recalled. ‘The best thing about dating Ekin-Su is that we understand each other – not just because we are literally the same person,” Davide said. ‘She is my copy-paste.”

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The ex-couple kept their relationship pretty private after they starred in the reality TV show. In a YouTube clip, David said, “Me and Ekin-Su had our struggles due to our public positions and we still have them sometimes.” He continued, “If there’s something that I would change or would have done differently [with Ekin-Su in the villa] maybe I would have taken things a bit more slowly.”

On June 29, 2023, Davide posted on his Instagram story, “@ekinsuofficial & I are no longer together. I am grateful for the memories and opportunities we shared together and I wish her nothing but the best.” He continued, “I would like for everybody to respect this decision during this difficult time, I will continue to support Ekin in anyway possible.”

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So why did David and Ekin-Su break up? Read more to find out?

Why Did Davide & Ekin-Su Break Up From Love Island UK?

Why did Davide and Ekin-Su break up? According to a source to The Sun, it was a pretty natural breakup. “They haven’t been getting along for quite some time and they really tried to make it work, but despite their best efforts, they’ve decided to call it quits,” the source said. The two were just spotted at the Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny premiere days before the announcement.

Another source told the outlet that Ekin-Su was “blindsided” by the breakup. “It’s fair to say Ekin is gutted about the split. She has worked really hard to make it work,” the souce said. “She has stood by Davide after a series of cheating rumours, and was surprised when he decided to chuck it all in. The pair have been arguing a lot and while Davide is saying it’s a long time coming, Ekin doesn’t feel like that.”

Meanwhile, an additional source explained Davide’s side of the story and why he dumped her. “He felt swamped in the relationship, like he had totally lost his identity. He felt he was in Ekin’s shadow, with no room to grow.” The source continued, “And he felt she cared more about them as a money-making brand than as a love match. He had been wanting to end it for some time. Davide didn’t want to move in with her as he knew it would be harder to leave.”

Relationship expert Annabelle Knight told The Mirror about the reality show’s inner workings and how it affects the remaining couples outside the show. “Love Island couples break up quickly after the villa because they haven’t come up with a plan for the outside,” she said. “When you’re in the villa, you’re only having to juggle that one ball. It’s nice and easy, and stress-free. When you get home, you’ve got all the boring mundane things you have to do as an adult.”

She told the outlet that the former couple may have realized their “summer romance” had become too serious. “I think these couples have fallen victim to only getting to know their partner on a surface level,” she said adding that the couples need to learn how to put boundaries in place.

On July 10, 2023, she wrote in her Instagram stories, “Hi everyone, I thought it was time to come back online to thank you so much for all of your messages over the past 2-weeks. It has shown me what a kind, supportive, strong community I have behind me. I took some much needed time away with my family which has been really special but now it’s time to realign & get back to work.”

She continued, “I have such an exciting year ahead & I want to fully focus on that. I really appreciate your ongoing support. Thank you for cheering me on. Ekin x”

In a recent interview with Cosmopolitan UK, Ekin opened up that she lost friends due to her booming popularity since leaving the show. “I’ve lost every friend I had,” she told the outlet. “I don’t have any friends. I have one friend and that’s it. Unfortunately, with the fame, you see people’s true colours. People just want to be your friend because of your status, and it’s a hard industry to trust. No, I don’t actually have friends left.”

“People I’d known for 10 years who were in my life… Selling stories is not very nice. I wouldn’t do that to someone,” she said. “If they were happy, I would support them. Unfortunately, I had that coming out of the villa, I had to delete people out of my life. But I am happier this way. Sometimes keeping your circle small is the best, and you don’t always need friends. So long as you know who you are, that’s fine.”

She continued, “There have been things in my life that I can’t mention now that have affected my mental health for a while. I had to keep smiling and pretend everything was fine. This was during Dancing On Ice when there were things in the background – not relationship related, by the way – [they were] work related that was very hard. I couldn’t say anything.”

The couple was also embroiled in cheating rumors after a source told The Sun that Davide was talking to other girls to which she was “fuming and upset”. He was also reported to have met up with the girls in Manchester.

The source revealed “It all exploded after she [Ekin-Su] found messages on Davide’s phone discussing their time together. He had been messaging both of the girls and she suspected they had all met up one night. Ekin-Su contacted one of the girls to tell them she knew about things. She was furious and really upset.”

The two went on a vcation in Amsterdam as “a bid for Davide to clear the air” and a “desperate attempt to win Ekin-Su over again”. An insider told The Sun: “Ekin has been angry and upset and the pair really needed a change to reconnect.

“Ekin and Davide are at their best when they are away from everyone else and can concentrate on each other – without any distractions. Davide has a lot of grovelling to do and he’s vowed to cut down on clubbing in Manchester without her. He hopes this trip will be enough to reassure Ekin and make things right again.”

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