She entered the jungle in typical dramatic style on Sunday after reportedly signing a £1.5 million deal to join this year's line-up - the biggest in I’m A Celeb’s 22-year history.
And while all eyes were on Coleen Rooney’s big comeback, her arrival Down Under was marred by reports that her husband, Wayne, 39, won’t be there to greet her on the famous bridge for her emotional exit due to his hectic work commitments with his team, Plymouth Argyle.
But insiders tell Closer how the mum-of-four, 37, is in fact behind the decision for the footballer turned coach to stay back amid her fears that his appearance could potentially taint her return to the limelight.
A source says, ‘This is Coleen’s big moment and she wants to ensure that nothing gets in the way of that or deters the attention from her comeback, which she fears Wayne’s presence could do.
‘Given all the public and private storms they've weathered over the years, she doesn’t want to risk having their marriage being thrust back into the spotlight and her time in the jungle being overshadowed by any negativity that could come with Wayne’s appearance.
‘They had some difficult talks and weighed up the pros and cons of him flying out to meet her and while Wayne really wanted to be there and insisted he could get cover for the games he’d miss, Coleen was pretty adamant that this needed to be her moment to shine and said his work commitments would be the perfect disguise to cover-up her decision to avoid anything potentially destroying or overshadowing that.’
The childhood sweethearts have been rocked by numerous scandals and cheating allegations during their 22-year relationship which has almost torn their marriage apart and seen Coleen come under intense public scrutiny amid her decision to stand by her husband.
But after reigning victory in the Wagatha Christie trial and receiving rave reviews in her Disney + documentary, The Real Wagatha Story, the former Closer columnist has managed to turn the tide of public scrutiny into triumph and praise.
And after deciding to stay in Cheshire when Wayne moved to Plymouth for his new coaching job in May, Closer revealed how she’d vowed to start focusing on herself after being a stay-at-home-mum for the last 15 years.
Opening up on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place podcast last week, she defended her decision not to throw away their 16-year marriage, insisting there ‘was always love there.’
She said, ‘Why throw it away when you can work at it? If you work at it, and it doesn't work, then forget about it and go your own separate ways. But, there's always been love... we never wanted to part.’
And pals say while Coleen was anxious about leaving Wayne and their four boys - Kai, 14, Klay, 10, Kit, seven and five-year-old Cass - behind when she enters the I'm A Celeb jungle, she's determined to give the experience her all and make them proud.
The source adds, ‘Coleen was understandably incredibly emotional leaving them and had a couple of wobbles where she had second thoughts, but ultimately she knew that she needed to do this for herself and embrace the experience and all that comes with it after putting her career on hold for the last 15 years.
‘Wayne vowed to be her anchor at home alongside her parents and while he was initially upset with her decision to keep him back, he respected her reasons knowing that this is her time and after everything he's put her through, he needs to focus on supporting her 100% and doing everything in his power to ensure this experience is everything she's hoping it will be.’