Girls Aloud should "learn from Gary Barlow" if they are considering solo careers.
Pet Shop Boys singer Neil Tennant claims the quintet - Nadine Coyle, Cheryl Cole, Nicola Roberts, Sarah Harding and Kimberley Walsh - should look at the Take That star's failure away from the band to realise they are better as a group.
He said: "I would rather none of them went down that road. There are lessons to be learned from Gary Barlow's solo career."
However, Neil believes that if the 'Biology' stars do go their separate ways, he thinks Cheryl - who has also carved out a successful career as a judge on British TV talent show 'The X Factor' - would have the best chance of making it alone.
He added to NME magazine: "I can't help but feel Cheryl will have the most successful solo career because she's just really famous."