Closer (UK)

Coleen’s pal: “Wayne’s sex scandals being brought up again is so embarrassi­ng”

As a new book dredges up Wayne’s past infideliti­es, Coleen Rooney’s WAG pal Lizzie Cundy tells Closer why it’s still plaguing their marriage

- By Daisy McLure

IT’S THE LAST THING SHE NEEDS RIGHT NOW WITH THIS HUGE COURT CASE LOOMING

It’s been a year since she famously accused former friend Rebekah Vardy’s Instagram account of being the source of leaked stories about her private life. And while she was originally hailed as “brave” for her WAGatha Christie reveal, things have since turned sour for Coleen Rooney.

Last week, while Rebekah – who has vehemently denied the claims and is suing Coleen for defamation – was hailed for her charity work as ambassador of Barnado’s and said she was “so grateful” to be taking part on one of TV’s biggest shows, Dancing On Ice, Coleen suffered yet another blow when husband Wayne’s murky past made headlines again.

A serialisat­ion of a new autobiogra­phy by former Arsenal footballer Nicklas Bendtner has shockingly claimed that the use of prostitute­s among footballer­s is common, calling it a “widespread phenomenon”.

Wayne’s previous dalliances with sex workers have been widely reported. He admitted to visiting a Liverpool brothel ten times in 2004, and in 2010, escorts Helen Wood and Jenny Thompson alleged they’d had a threesome with Wayne.

Nicklas’ autobiogra­phy also claimed that Wayne and Manchester City player Kyle Walker were the “unlucky” ones who’d been “caught red-handed”. He wrote, “It’s a real shame those lads have been portrayed as particular­ly nasty guys. That’s not necessaril­y true. But they’ve probably been more careless or unlucky than average. They’ve only been caught red-handed with their pants down.”

SHAME

Despite him defending Wayne, bringing up his past sex shame couldn’t have come at a worse time for wife Coleen, as it’s just weeks until she comes face to face with nemesis Rebekah at their High Court showdown in November.

Legal experts have previously told Closer that private details such as these could be dragged up again in court, which Coleen will want to avoid. Meanwhile, fans had taken to social media

to question why she publicly took Rebekah to task for believing she’d betrayed her, but has stuck by her husband.

And Nicklas’ account of footballer­s sleeping with prostitute­s has further fuelled public interest. One fan commented on the extract, “Wouldn’t most men with vast amounts of disposal income enjoy the services of gorgeous women willing to do as they wish while away from home?”

In recent years, Wayne has expressed his “regret” for his “foolish” actions, while Coleen said in 2010 that it was “painful for her family.”

Now her pal Lizzie Cundy, who herself was married to a lovecheat footballer, Chelsea star Jason Cundy, says having it constantly mentioned is “embarrassi­ng”. She says, “People will read things [like this] about your business and – I’ve been there – it’s so embarrassi­ng. I think [Wayne’s cheating] coming up again will be really tough on Coleen, and it’s the last thing she needs right now with this huge court case looming, which everyone is going to be talking about. It’ll be extremely annoying for her that talk about his past sex shame still plagues their marriage.

DEVASTATED

“I don’t believe Coleen wants this court case – not because she thinks she’s wrong, but because she didn’t want to spend all this time on it, and especially because it’s going to be on every front page. Yet again, their family name is getting dragged through the mud, and I’m sure she’ll be devastated, thinking, ‘Not more of these awful stories being dug up again’.”

While Coleen has mostly stayed quiet on Wayne’s past scandals, she did speak out in 2017, when she admitted their marriage was rocked after he was caught drink-driving party girl Laura Simpson’s car after a night out. In a lengthy Facebook post, she blasted her husband as “stupid and selfish”, but insisted she was staying with him and she was “still in love” with him. Laura later told her side of the story on This Morning, claiming they had kissed and that she would have slept with him had they not been caught.

Lizzie says that having constant talk of his infidelity is naturally still a shadow over their marriage, explaining, “Even though it’s in the past, it keeps cropping up again, which is clearly going to be a strain [on a marriage]. When something like this has happened, it’s a major part of your life and you’re both going through it and reliving it. But she’s strong and she will get over this being dredged up again because she has a bigger battle ahead with the court case. I think it’ll make her and Wayne stronger as they always stick together. And for people saying she’s a fool, I think she is braver and stronger to stick by him and keep her family together. People will say it’s for the lifestyle, but they’re wrong. It’s because she’s putting her sons first and she loves them more than anything. I think it’s quite admirable.”

 ??  ?? Wayne was alleged to have had a threesome with escorts Helen Woods (right) and Jenny Thompson in 2010
Wayne was alleged to have had a threesome with escorts Helen Woods (right) and Jenny Thompson in 2010
 ??  ?? Lizzie says the pair – here with their youngest son Cass – will “always stick together”
Lizzie says the pair – here with their youngest son Cass – will “always stick together”

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