Footballer Andy Carroll has announced he and wife Billi Mucklow are in the process of divorcing after two rocky years of marriage.
It is understood the pair, who have three children together, split in July before Carroll’s surprise transfer to play for Bordeaux this season.
The striker also played in Amiens in France last season and the distance is thought to have impacted the relationship with TOWIE star turned yoga teacher Mucklow remaining in Essex.
The Sun reported that 35-year-old Carroll was involved in a street brawl in Mayfair in July when he was seen “yelling at strangers” at 1am.
The pair got together in 2014 and have been married for two years. They had children in 2015 and 2017 while Carroll has two children from a previous relationship.
The pair almost broke up in 2022 when Carroll was pictured passed out on a bed in Dubai as he celebrated his stag do.
Mucklow is said to have moved out and taken off her engagement ring but the marriage got back on track once one of the women pictured said “nothing sexual” happened.
However, this time it appears the pair have broken up for good as Carroll continues his life in western France.
In a statement, he wrote: “Billi and I have privately separated earlier this year and we are under way with our divorce proceedings.
“It has been a hard few months for our family and we continue to move forward amicably for our children.”
Carroll has won nine caps for England and was once considered one of the hottest prospects in the game, signing for Liverpool in January 2011 for £50m.
However, injuries often left him unable to fulfil his ambitions and the now 35-year-old is now playing in the French fourth tier after Bordeaux were relegated for administrative reasons.
Last year, he said: "People see the money but not the sacrifices. I say a lot to Billi, my wife, that I wish I could just walk down the street and be me. No one really sees me. I’m always keeping up appearances.”