Wayne Rooney has stressed the importance of him and his Birmingham City players ignoring the “Wagatha Christie” backdrop to their match against Leicester City. Rooney said Birmingham could not afford to “get dragged into a sideshow” after the game was moved to Monday after being selected for a prime-time slot on Sky Sports. The match will probably be watched by millions but viewers may be disappointed that Jamie Vardy is set to miss out through injury.
The broadcaster would have been hoping for former England teammates Rooney, the Birmingham manager, and Vardy to face each other for the first time since the libel case between Coleen and Rebekah, their respective wives, but the Leicester forward is not expected to feature because of a knee problem. Rebekah Vardy lost her legal case against Coleen Rooney, leaving her with a substantial legal bill, reportedly of about £3m. After a two-week trial, which became a cultural talking point last year, the high court ruled that Rebekah must pay 90% of Coleen’s court costs.
Birmingham entertain Leicester, the Championship leaders, at St Andrew’s hoping to improve on their run of two wins from 10 matches since Rooney replaced John Eustace in October. The 38-year-old previously suggested England should have lured Vardy out of retirement to partner Harry Kane at Euro 2020. At the time, he said: “I know some people may be surprised at this, especially with the legal case between my wife and Jamie’s wife, but this is my honest football opinion.”
Asked this week whether he had a better relationship with Vardy than perhaps the public realise, Rooney replied: “I played with him for England, the same as I played with many players for England. He is not someone who I have ever had a relationship with, outside of being away on a training camp or being in games with him. I respect Jamie Vardy a lot, I think he is a fantastic player – he still has a lot to offer Leicester. But I think what is important is we don’t get dragged into a sideshow about everything that has happened in the past, which everyone is aware has been dealt with from a legal point of view. My job is to focus on Birmingham trying to win the game.”
The saga began four years ago when Coleen sought to find out who was leaking stories from her private Instagram account to journalists at the Sun. Coleen identified the culprit with the now infamous words posted on Instagram: “It’s ……… Rebekah Vardy’s account.” Rebekah, who still denies the claims, sued Coleen for libel in an attempt to restore her reputation.
Rooney insists Monday’s backdrop has no bearing on his preparations. “Not at all … the game is Birmingham City v Leicester,” he said. “In my opinion, Jamie Vardy is a fantastic player and has been for many years, a great servant for Leicester. Ultimately, the game is about Birmingham going to try and win the game. Anything else, there is nothing really to talk about.”
Enzo Maresca, the Leicester manager, said it was “impossible” for Vardy to feature. The 36-year-old striker has scored six league goals this season but has missed Leicester’s past three matches, wins against West Brom, Plymouth and Millwall.
Since the trial, a West End play centred on the case was mooted and Channel 4 released the two-part series Vardy v Rooney: A Courtroom Drama, starring Michael Sheen. Coleen secured a multimillion-pound deal with Disney for the rights of a tell-all documentary on the saga, after a bidding war with Amazon Prime, Netflix and Discovery.
Asked what he makes of the mass interest in the case, Rooney deadpanned: “I think it’s great there’s a global interest in Birmingham City playing Leicester … It’s a great platform for our players to go and show what good players they are.”
