Now that the drama surrounding the Wagatha Christie scandal has finally died down, a triumphant Coleen Rooney has been seemingly taking pleasure in a slower pace of life.
Following the news that her husband, ex-England footballer Wayne Rooney, had been sacked from his managerial role at Birmingham City after just 83 days in charge, the couple jetted off to Dubai for a romantic break.
The sun-soaked trip to the Middle East coincided not only with reports that unemployed Wayne is “eyeing up” a return to management in Saudi Araba, but also the ongoing WAG war between her friend Annie Kilner and Lauryn Goodman.
And despite Coleen, 37, thriving post-Wagatha, insiders say the recent WAG cheating scandal has dredged up bad memories of her own marriage woes.
A source says, “With everything that’s going on with Kyle [Walker] and Annie, Coleen can’t help but go back to the time Wayne hurt her. Coleen is friends with Annie and has offered her support, but Wayne is friends with Kyle, so it makes it difficult. Their boys are also friends.
“The whole thing has just made her feel anxious – their part of Cheshire is small and can feel claustrophobic and toxic. So with potential job offers from the Middle East for Wayne, Coleen has been thinking it wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”
Wayne, 38, has been embroiled in several cheating scandals over the years, including sleeping with sex workers – one of whom was grandmother Patricia Tiernan – having a threesome when Coleen was pregnant with their first child, and being stopped for drink-driving while with party girl Laura Simpson.
Coleen revealed in her memoir that Wayne can control his drinking “in a normal situation” but added, ‘There are times, though, when things have gone awry, and he can’t control his drinking, and it’s generally when something is going on in life that he can’t deal with.”
But the couple have overcome the tough times, putting on a united front during Coleen’s Wagatha trial and in their respective documentaries.
And now a source says that Coleen is considering relocating to Saudi in a bid to get away from the toxic drama of the football world.
The source says, “When Wayne came back from America and took over at Birmingham, Coleen was relieved as she thought it meant they would all finally be settled in Cheshire for a while as Wayne worked out what he wanted to do next.
“However, she knows Wayne doesn’t like not having a regular job and is itching to get back into football management. Saudi could be a great option. The money on offer is off the scale and the lifestyle would be incredible for him and his family.”
When Wayne – who shares Kai, 14, Klay, 11, Kit, eight, and Cass, five with Coleen – played for D.C. United in the 2018/19 season, the Rooneys moved Stateside, which left Coleen “crying every night” with homesickness. But an insider reveals that the Middle East would be a different story, as they’ve holidayed there and it would likely only be a short stint for Wayne.
The source adds, “Coleen is thinking that a Saudi move would be different from America as it would feel like they’re all on an extended holiday.
“Their mega mansion is their forever home, so they could spend a bit of time away and she knows she could work out everything with the kids’ schooling and football commitments back in the UK.”
Elsewhere, the couple’s close pals Steven and Alex Gerrard have been splitting their time between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain since last summer, while Steven manages Al-Ettifaq.
And the source adds, “Wayne has spoken to Steven about life out there and knows he could easily persuade Coleen to move for a while. As well as Alex, Coleen’s friend Dawn Ward now lives in Dubai, so she would have a good social circle.”