Simon Cowell seems to have confirmed reports that Louis Walsh will no longer be a judge on the' X Factor'.

Over the weekend, The Sun claimed that SiCo had sacked the Irish music mogul after 11 years on the panel, in a bid to shake up the show.

Cowell has now taken to Twitter to address Walsh’s future on the ITV talent show, and in a rather cryptic message, has all but confirmed he WON’T be returning.

Simon wrote: “Louis Walsh is one of the good guys. We will always be friends. The door remains open and who knows what's next......."

Despite Cowell’s comments, an XF spokesperson told Digital Spy: “No formal decisions have been made regarding the full panel for this year's series."

With reports suggesting One Direction star Louis Tomlinson is being lined-up for Judges’ Houses, it’s been claimed that Harry Styles’ pal Nick Grimshaw could replace Walsh on the panel.

A source told The Mirror: “Grimmy is one of the most well connected men in showbiz and will make a brilliant judge.

“It's clear Cowell's hope is that he will attract new viewers and artists to the show.He feels fresher and more relevant than some of the previous judges.”

They continued: "Louis has been a great servant to the show but he is out of touch now compared to up and coming stars like Grimmy. The hope is Grimmy can come in and Louis will leave.

“There are complications because Grimmy has a Radio 1 contract with the BBC and will be working for ITV too. But everyone seems confident something can be worked out.”

The insider concluded: “The BBC will have mixed emotions. On one hand, he will be on ITV, on the other, it will raise the profile even more of his breakfast show on Radio 1.”

Grimshaw has previously expressed said he would “love” to join Cowell, Cheryl Fernandez-Versini and Co on the XF panel, and with the deal said to be worth up to £1million, we’ve got our fingers firmly crossed for him!