Love can be a tricky game.

If you fancy someone, it can be difficult to know if they like you back *cue hours of stalking them online and asking your mates 'do you think I should text him?'*

Sometimes your crush may act coy or sometimes they can be genuinely shy and you just can't gauge what they're feeling.

Well, according to new research, your eyes scan people's bodies differently depending on whether you want to be platonic or romantic with them.

The study, which was published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behaviour, studied 100 people and asked them to look at photographs of different people.

The researchers found that those who looked at the head and chest more were "assessing potential [romantic] mates," and those who looked at the legs and feet were more interested in friends.

"Eye gaze was a valid indicator of relationship interest. For women, looking at the head corresponded to greater interest in friendship, whereas for men looking at the head corresponded to less interest in friendship," the study said.

The study concluded by saying: "Research on attraction tends to assume there is a fixed set of characteristics that makes a person desirable.

"This new study shows that what people look for in a prospective relationship partner depends on their relational goals.

"The same person who makes a highly desirable friend may not make a good mate," it added.