A family member of football star McDonald Mariga has come out to vehemently deny that Joey Muthengi is in a relationship with the football darling.

"I'm not sure why Joey has been lying to Kenyans and her fans," said McDonald Mariga's family member, who requested to be kept anonymous.

"I can CATEGORICALLY state that they are NOT dating. He is a married guy! Have you noticed he has not said anything or commented on the story only Joey feeding lies to stay relevant. The guy would have claimed her by now," the source added.

Joey in an interview with SDE revealed that come January she will be jetting to Milan, Italy to vacation with Mariga.

"I don’t know where this (relationship) will take us. Ask Mariga. But we will see what becomes of it. Unfortunately, I just felt that what I was going to do with life did not coincide with what Citizen TV had for me. Besides, I had a good time there and I will miss everyone, especially my fans."

The irate family member added that Joey's trip to Italy is work related and has nothing to do with a vacation with Mariga.

Joey said:

"Well, I will be moving to Italy in January for holiday. I think I need to get a good break for myself and so I can confirm to you that I will be in Milan for a while. The BetIn deal, whose shoot was in Italy, opened doors for me and given a chance I would still work with them."