[Arneldo]

A soldier who served in Iraq is already being tipped as a potential winner of the new X Factor series.

Izi, 22, visited the Wales auditions and caused a stir in the waiting area before impressing the judges with a performance of Lean On Me, which he followed up with another Bill Withers hit, Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone.

Simon Cowell, Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh and new judge Dannii Minogue have already put him through to the boot camp stage, and believe that he has the potential to go all the way.

A show source told the Daily Star: "It's the first time we've had a soldier. He arrived at the auditions in Wales dressed in combats and he raised quite a few eyebrows. He's very good looking and everyone was buzzing around him when they found out that he had served in Iraq, telling him how brave he was.

"The judges were amazed by his talents. He is certainly a fave for the final. And he'll be a natural for the X Factor boot camp."

DS