X Factor 2013: Sam Callahan voted off after sing-off against Luke Friend

Louis Walsh praised the teenager as the 'hardest working contestant' ever

X Factor 2013 contestant Sam Callahan (ITV/Rex Features)

Sam Callahan has been voted off X Factor 2013, after he faced a sing-off against Luke Friend.

The 19-year-old from Essex, who has faced criticism from the judges, was sent home after his rendition of “I don’t want the world to see me” by The Goo Goo Dolls.

Gary Barlow, Nicole Scherzinger and Sharon Osbourne all voted to send Callahan home, with mentor Louis Walsh abstaining from the vote.

Barlow, who had been Callahan’s harshest critic throughout the show, praised his performance and said it was “the best I’ve ever seen you do”.

He added that he had given Callahan tough critique throughout the weeks but he had always “taken it like a man”.

Scherzinger opted to save Luke Friend due to his stronger vocals, but appeared angered at Callahan for taking so long to bare his “heart and soul” to the audience.

Osbourne agreed, telling Callahan: “I’m so angry with you for taking this long to connect as a performer.”

Callahan, who was working as a bartender before appearing on the show, said: “I’ve had the most amazing time. I have absolutely no regrets. I hope this is just the beginning of a massive, massive adventure.”

Sunday night’s result show included a low-key performance from Miley Cyrus, who surprised viewers by her lack of controversial on-stage antics.

The 20-year-old singer emerged on a slope of sand, wearing a full-length gold dress, singing her hit single “Wrecking Ball”.

Viewers were also disappointed by her vocals, with one tweeting: “Miley Cyrus’ vocals came in like a shaky wreck”.