Justin Timberlake ‘Still Has a Soft Spot’ and ‘A Lot of Sympathy’ For Struggling Ex Britney Spears

Justin Timberlake is showing his support for Britney Spears as the fragile pop star gets skewered by her ex Kevin Federline, sources tell Globe.

The former boy bander, 44, is said to think it’s “despicable” that his onetime girlfriend, 43, has come under attack in a scathing memoir that paints her as a deadbeat mom in major need of being saved from herself.

Kevin, 47, is currently hawking his damaging tell-all, You Thought You Knew, which goes into graphic detail about his failed three-year marriage to the “Toxic” trainwreck.

In addition to accusing her of snorting cocaine when she was pregnant with their sons, he says she stood over the youngsters as they slept while clutching a knife.

The former backup dancer and wannabe deejay also called out his ex for allegedly cheating on him, and claims to have busted her phoning Justin the night before their 2004 wedding. (A rep for Britney blasted Kevin’s book, stating to People, “Once again he and others are profiting off her and sadly it comes after child support has ended with Kevin. All she cares about are her kids,” while Britney added on X that the “constant gaslighting” from Kevin was “extremely hurtful and exhausting.”)

As readers know, Britney and the NSYNC hunk met on Mickey Mouse Club and went on to date for three years, before splitting in 2002.

Sources say Britney never got over him. She revealed in her memoir, The Woman in Me, that she aborted Justin’s baby at his urging.

But sources say there’s still a sense of respect and affection between them, and now Justin, who is married to actress Jessica Biel, is coming to his ex’s aid.

“Justin thinks it’s despicable that Kevin’s hitting her with all these terrible insults and sleazy revelations about their time together while she’s at low ebb,” says an insider.

“He’s not especially close with her these days and it didn’t go down well when she went into detail about their broken romance.”

“But he’s still got a soft spot and a lot of sympathy for her. Seeing her suffer makes him sad. Justin has always thought Kevin was a freeloading douchebag and this book he’s written only proves it.”