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Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink became the fourth celebrity to exit Strictly Come Dancing on Sunday evening after a shock dance off with a show favourite.
The former Leeds United and Chelsea footballer, 53, found himself in the bottom two alongside Love Island winner Amber Davies, 29, despite both being two of the highest scorers of the week.
While Hasselbaink and his dance partner Lauren Oakley scored 30 out of 40 for their American Smooth to Purple Rain by Prince and the Revolution, Davies and professional dancer Nikita Kuzmin scored 33 for their Cha Cha Cha to Break Free by Ariana Grande.
The Welsh actress has been criticised for having years of dance experience in West End productions prior to appearing on the BBC dance show, and television viewers failed to vote for the star despite her high scores.
But after both couples performed their routines again, Davies was saved in the dance off with judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke unanimously voting to keep her in the competition.
Hasselbaink, who achieved his highest score of the competition on Saturday, said he had ‘absolutely loved’ his time on the show.
He then added: ‘The only thing you can do is dance as best as you can and then it’s up to the public.
‘I was actually quite happy to dance again because I wanted to do better than my previous one.
‘So listen, I have had a blast. From the people up there [pointing to the other couples], to the judges – thank you very much for your comments.’
His professional dance partner Oakley said she was ‘gutted’ about his exit and added: ‘We have had the best time and I am so proud of how far he has come.
‘And it proves that anyone can be a dancer if you put your mind to it. He’s a footballer! And he just danced like that.
‘We’ve had the best time and I’m just so proud and I feel honoured to have been able to teach you. You’ve been an amazing student.’
Her comments will reignite debate among Strictly fans about those with vast dance experience appearing as contestants on the show.
The only person to top Davies’s score was Emmerdale actor Lewis Cope with a score of 34.
He appeared in Billy Elliot the Musical and was part of the dance crew Ruff Diamond, who reached the final of Sky’s Got To Dance and the Semi-Finals of Britain’s Got Talent.
At the bottom of the leaderboard was YouTube influencer George Clarke with a score of 27.
He was followed by drag queen La Voix, Eastenders actress Balvinder Sopal, Down’s Syndrome model Ellie Goldstein, and former footballer Karen Carney, who all scored 28.
It comes after presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman announced they will depart the show at the end of the series.
Winkleman, 53, said: ‘We thank you for your beautiful messages. We’ve got another eight weeks on this incredible show and a Strictly champion to crown.’
Daly, 56, added: ‘We cannot wait to spend the rest of the series with you and our incredible couples.’
The remaining ten couples will take to the dancefloor for a Halloween special, when Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One on Saturday 1 November at 6.35pm.
