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      Jordan Henderson quitting Saudi soccer doesn’t surprise me — I sat in empty stadiums in 40C heat and was bored to tears

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      DRENCHED with sweat, Jordan Henderson looked utterly exhausted as he trudged to the touchline to grab yet another swig from a water bottle.The England international and former Liverpool captain seemed out on his feet after giving his all as he has done countless times for club and country.
      Jordan Henderson seemed out of his feet playing for Saudi minnows Al-EttifaqCredit: Getty
      The Sun’s Chief Foreign Correspondent Nick Parker shares his thoughts on why Saudi football is so off-puttingCredit: Ian Whittaker – Commissioned by The Sun
      But this was not a World Cup epic watched by millions — rather the harsh reality of Henderson’s debut, in 35C heat, for Saudi Arabian Pro League minnows Al-Ettifaq.
      It was not yet half time when Henderson — who with Liverpool won the Champions League in 2019, the Premier League the next year and the FA Cup in 2022 — took his fourth water break in a ramshackle, half-full stadium unfit for even an English League One tie.
      The midfielder was playing in front of just 13,000 fans, under new club coach and fellow former Liverpool and England star Steven Gerrard last August — and even then the writing was on the wall for all to see.
      Now, with Henderson tonight signing off a move to Dutch giants Ajax, after just six months in Saudi, he is the first of a host of crazy-money signings from the Premier League and other European top-flights who are expected to quit the desert kingdom.
      READ MORE BEAUTIFUL GAME
      A source told me: “Jordan knows he has made a terrible mistake and stands to lose a lot of money.
      “But he can’t face another day in Saudi. He has found the heat intolerable and the quality of the football is, frankly, beneath his talents and won’t keep him in the England reckoning.”
      I feel his pain. Watching his debut in Saudi was one of the weirdest experiences of my 35 years covering football games for The Sun.
      Ahead of the 9pm kick-off, daytime temperatures had topped 40C but the real killer was stifling 60 per cent humidity.
      Most read in Football
      I was soaked in sweat two minutes after stepping out of my taxi — and I was just a spectator.
      Even locals accustomed to the heat were tearing up cardboard boxes to create makeshift fans as play began.
      Having experienced the World Cup glitz in neighbouring Qatar just months earlier, my arrival at the new Saudi home of two Liverpool legends was a shock.
      The Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd Stadium was built in 1973 and needs more than a lick of paint — it needs air-con.
      It seats 26,000 but was only half full, despite the pre-match promise of Cristiano Ronaldo and former Liverpool striker Sadio Mane lining up for the opponents Al-Nassr.
      The drabness of Al-Ettifaq’s laboured 2-1 victory, and former Manchester United favourite Ronaldo failing to show for the game, was only made worse by the multi-use stadium’s running track keeping fans remote from the action.
      The star signings on show must have been baffled by the tiny Saudi fan base.
      Women in burkas, men in Arab robes and others in jeans and T-shirts watched from the sweltering stands, where swathes of faded blue plastic seats lay empty.
      A repeat of this when Saudi Arabia hosts the 2034 World Cup would be a disaster — fear of which could lead to a temporary lifting of the Gulf state’s booze ban, to woo more fans.
      But it is not just the heat, and tiny crowds, triggering the footballers’ exodus from Saudi.
      The Islamic kingdom’s strict cultural code is also to blame for this.
      Boozing is banned and punishable by flogging, while players’ Wags are not legally allowed out in public alone — and women in Saudi have only been allowed to drive since 2018.
      Henderson, 33, more than tripled his Liverpool salary, to a reported £700,000 a week, when he moved to Saudi last summer in the twilight of his career.
      Gerrard, 43, landed a £15.2million-a-year deal — after he was axed as Aston Villa boss then ignored by even Championship clubs.
      But the fanfare around the pair’s unveiling at the Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd Stadium looked staged, fake and doomed.
      The sweltering heat, as well as extremely strict cultural codes, have left Saudi stadiums full of empty seats during gamesCredit: Ian Whittaker – Commissioned by The Sun
      The fanfare around Steven Gerrard’s £15.2m deal with Al-Ettifaq looked staged, fake and doomedCredit: Reuters
      Within weeks, Henderson — used to playing before 50,000-strong crowds at Anfield and on glittering World Cup stages — turned out in front of just 610 fans for one Al-Ettifaq game.
      The unhappy playmaker is now bailing out to Ajax.
      He was so desperate quit joyless Saudi that he has reportedly agreed to a 75 per cent pay cut to move to Amsterdam.
      He played just 19 times for former Reds team-mate Gerrard and has now torn up his three-year contract with the club and walked out of an Al-Ettifaq training camp in Dubai.
      His Saudi wages would have been tax-free had he stayed for two years.
      But he faces a £7million tax bill if he returns to the UK, thanks to HMRC rules and having spent less than a year working abroad.
      He is far from alone in wanting out, though.
      My source added: “A lot of top players brought in at huge expense from the Premier League and Europe feel the same — and Jordan won’t be the first to leave.”
      Al-Nassr signing Cristiano Ronaldo, 38, was the first megastar to move to Saudi two years ago on a ridiculous £3.4million a week.
      He was followed by Brazil showman Neymar, 31, who joined Al-Hilal on £2.5million a week, from French club PSG.
      Cristiano Ronaldo was the first megastar to move to Saudi, on a ridiculous £3.4m a weekCredit: Instagram @cristiano
      Ronaldo was soon followed by Brazilian showman NeymarCredit: Getty
      The preening ex-Barcelona striker also demanded three supercars for himself, four Mercedes G Wagons for his entourage, a Mercedes van with a driver on 24-hour standby, and an army of staff.
      Other imports have included Real Madrid’s Karim Benzema, Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino, Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante, Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez, Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitro-vic, Wolves’ Ruben Neves and former Celtic winger Jota.
      But with the January transfer window now open, many are fed up and desperate to turn tail.
      Firmino is being linked to Fulham, Jota to Tottenham and Benzema to Chelsea.
      Meanwhile legendary Liverpool goal machine Robbie Fowler’s spell as boss of a Saudi second-tier club has ended after four months, following an apparent spat with management.
      Ex-England ace Fowler, 48, was inexplicably axed despite the club being on a winning run.
      He is believed to have received a large severance payout and has not spoken about his exit, which came weeks before Henderson blew the whistle on Al-Ettifaq.
      Henderson’s game in front of 610 fans was the fifth-lowest attendance of the flop Pro League this season, the tiniest being 257, and comes despite the billions invested by the Saudi government in a brazen bid to “sportswash” its appalling human rights record.
      But the sheikhs lavishing oil wealth on the lacklustre league are unlikely to be put off after greedy Fifa chiefs gifted them the 2034 World Cup.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      A Saudi soccer source said: “Players will come and go but Saudi Arabians love football and we are in for the long haul.
      “We have the resources and will do what it takes to make our league and World Cup a great success.” More

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      Kyle Walker’s pregnant wife Annie Kilner reveals ‘K’ commitment tattoo after dumping footballer over Lauryn Goodman baby

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      PREGNANT Annie Kilner reveals a “K” commitment tattoo — as she bonds with a loyal new companion.Model Annie, 30, clutched a puppy as she continues to live apart from hubby Kyle Walker.
      Annie Kilner clutched a puppy following her split from Kyle — with a commitment tattoo showingCredit: Splash News
      A source said of Kyle: ‘If only he had shown her the same level of commitment’Credit: Splash
      The Man City defender, 33, is trying to save their marriage despite fathering a second child with Lauryn Goodman.
      He continues to wear his wedding ring — unlike Annie, whose tattoo will prove harder to remove.
      A source said: “Annie had ‘K’ for Kyle tattooed on to her ring finger a while ago.
      “If only he had shown her the same level of commitment.”
      READ MORE ON KYLE AND ANNIE
      We revealed Annie is six months pregnant with their fourth baby.
      The source added: “Her focus is their baby. She’s under a huge amount of pressure because of what he’s done.
      “But she wants to make sure she is doing everything she can to stay strong.”
      Lauryn and Kyle already share son Kairo, three, born in 2021 following a brief split with his childhood sweetheart Annie.
      Most read in Football
      Last week it emerged Lauryn fell pregnant with their daughter following secret visits to  Manchester for Kyle to see their son.
      They had a daughter last summer – now six months old – but Lauryn claims Kyle repeatedly denied the girl was his.
      She said the footballer then “tried to control me” in an effort to keep his secret family hidden from Annie.
      Fighting back tears, she says she kept asking the footballer to come clean with his wife but he was “too weak to do it”.

      Left with no other choice and desperate to move forward “like adults”, she broke the news to Annie on December 27.
      She told The Sun on Sunday: “I don’t think Annie wanted to believe it was true, which is understandable.
      “She kept asking for proof so I showed her the DNA test but even then she doubted it was real until I pointed out my daughter’s name on the paperwork.”
      As the women chatted they realised the England defender had lied to them both.
      Lauryn says: “She was asking all sorts of questions. I said, ‘I don’t want to hurt you,’ but she insisted on seeing photos, getting details.
      “I showed her one of Kyle and Kairo playing football together.
      “I know he has got photos of our kids up at Manchester City, I’ve met him lots of times since Kairo was born too. He has met his daughter.”
      Walker was later kicked out of the Cheshire home he shared with his wife and three sons.
      He is now renting a luxury £8,000-a-month apartment in nearby Hale, Cheshire.
      Annie announced last week she was separating from Walker after two years of marriage.
      It was confirmed hours later that Lauryn and Kyle shared a six month-old-daughter.
      Despite the affair tearing apart his marriage, a pal claims Lauryn meant nothing to the footballer.
      They told the Mirror: “It was effectively just a very, very quick fleeting thing while he was in the area.
      “Yes, things happened a few times but there were no ­feelings, and certainly no romance.”
      It comes as the player romped with Ex On The Beach star Laura Brown in his Bentley 4×4 and was caught having a Covid busting orgy with two hookers.
      Last March the City star was seen on CCTV exposing himself in a bar and snogging a woman.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      He dirty-danced with the woman — not his wife — and a female friend after he arrived at the Manchester venue drunk with male pals.
      Walker later voluntarily attended a police station for an interview for indecent exposure.
      The source added: ‘Her focus is their baby. She’s under a huge amount of pressure because of what he’s done’Credit: Splash
      Annie was seen kissing her tiny poochCredit: Splash
      The couple married in 2021Credit: Splash
      Annie is focusing on her pregnancy, a source saidCredit: Splash
      Annie and Kyle in happier times, before she learned that her love rat husband had fathered a second child with Lauryn GoodmanCredit: Tim Stewart News Limited
      Kyle’s marriage broke down after model Lauryn confronted Annie about her husband’s ‘secret life’Credit: Instagram / @lauryngoodman91 More

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      Laura Woods becomes millionaire after her earnings shoot up by £600,000 in ONE year

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      FOOTIE presenter Laura Woods has become a millionaire.The ITV and TNT Sports host, 36, saw her earnings shoot up by £600,000 in a year.
      Footie presenter Laura Woods has become a millionaireCredit: Getty
      The host, 36, saw her earnings shoot up by £600,000 in a yearCredit: PA
      Paperwork from her company The Pig and I Limited, set up in 2014, reveal assets have now reached £1million.
      Her wealth increased from £400,000 to £1million from December 2021 to December 2022.
      The increase of £600,000 is equivalent to earning £11,500 a week.
      But Laura is likely to have earned even more.
      READ MORE ON Laura Woods
      She left the talkSPORT breakfast show in June last year, where she is said to have earned £250,000 a year, and is rumoured to have had a huge pay rise on her move to TNT Sports.
      Arsenal fan Woods worked her way to the top by starting as a runner on Sky Sports.
      We recently revealed Laura joked she was being haunted by a picture of Ange Postecoglou.
      The TNT Sports host has revealed a snap of her and the Tottenham manager “keeps popping up” in her home.
      Most read in Football
      Woods had her picture taken with Postecoglou at Wimbledon last summer, with the polaroid snap now at her home.
      However, she has now admitted she cannot escape it after being asked if she would swap the Spurs boss with Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta. More

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      Man-child Kyle Walker needs to take a long, hard look at himself and grow the hell up like Harry Kane

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      JUDGING by his presence in both the England and Man City teams, footballer Kyle Walker’s sporting brain appears to be in full working order.But when it comes to emotional intelligence, he’s clearly cerebrally challenged.
      Kyle Walker is clearly cerebrally challenged in the emotional department, with five (apparently soon to be six) children by two different womenCredit: Getty
      How else has he ended up with five children by two different women, both of whom are furious with him?
      Stage left is his wife Annie, mother of three of his children and, according to The Sun yesterday, now pregnant with their fourth.
      Stage right is “lover” Lauryn Goodman, who recently revealed that not only was her three-year-old son fathered by Kyle, but her baby daughter, too.
      And centre stage is Kyle, who is known for his “pace, strength and vision” on the pitch but, off it, was seemingly as blind as a bat to the emotional perils that lay ahead because he couldn’t keep it in his trousers.
      READ MORE ON KYLE WALKER
      Reality star Lauryn, 32, says: “I kept saying to Kyle . . . ‘You need to tell her’ . . . If everyone knows where they stand they can make their own adult choices in life.
      “There were hearings coming up surrounding our daughter, there was paperwork flying around and legal meetings had taken place, and Annie needed to know the truth before something went public.”
      But Kyle did nothing and failed to anticipate what any adulterous schmuck knows — that Christmas is a potential flashpoint when you’re playing away.
      Particularly when your lover is facing the festive season as a single parent while her “baby daddy” is off playing happy families with his wife and other children.
      Most read in Football
      Lauryn explains that, following a legal meeting in December, “it came to a head” and she realised he was playing her and Annie off against each other.
      So, the day after Boxing Day, while Kyle was, er, playing away at Everton, she lobbed her emotional hand grenade into the cosy, post-Christmas idyll of Chez Walker and made a call to Annie.
      “She kept asking for proof, so I showed her the DNA test . . . she was trying to piece it all together . . . how he did it,” says Lauryn.
      To add insult to injury, she reveals that Kyle would regularly call her from the England dressing room and . . . “I wasn’t a secret to his England teammates — they would come on the phone when he FaceTimed me.”
      Very classy, chaps. Annie has now announced she is separating from Kyle after 12 years together (two of them married) and Kyle has publicly apologised to her for “the upset I’ve caused”, as though he’d simply caused a scene in a restaurant rather than fathered two secret children by another woman.
      Annie deserves better and I hope she eventually finds someone who treats her respectfully, but if she is pregnant again, her emotions will be raging and make it harder to see a future without the father of her children. So watch this space.
      In the meantime, Kyle needs to take a long, hard look at himself and grow the hell up.
      When it comes to women, life as a Premier League footballer is akin to being a kid in a sweetie shop.
      If you’re a single, teenage star, it’s perhaps understandable that you take your pick, but even an 18/19-year-old knows that, whatever contraception the woman says she’s using, the use of a condom is an extra layer of protection if you don’t want an unplanned baby and years of legal wrangling.
      Kyle is 33, for God’s sake. So perhaps it’s time for this man-child to take note of the example given by his 30-year-old teammate and England captain Harry Kane, whose longevity in the game is undoubtedly bolstered by his loyalty to his wife and children and the subsequent lack of drama in his personal life.
      Ditto his England manager Gareth Southgate, who has been happily married for 26 years.
      In June 2018, the manager warned his ­players about cheating in a meeting before a 2-1 victory over Nigeria at Wembley.
      “It’s not that we are looking to get away with anything, but if we thought we could then that option has gone.
      “We have to be vigilant in all areas of the pitch.”
      He was talking about football, of course. But, in Kyle’s case, it’s sound life advice, too.
      Kyle should look to the good example that Harry Kane has setCredit: Getty
      GIVE US POWER TO ACT
      WHEN we speak of an “institution” and its failings, it’s easy to forget that it’s inanimate.
      It’s only as good, or not, as the people working within it.
      The jury’s still out on whether Post Office investigator Stephen Bradshaw was useless or ruthless after he as accused of behaving like a ‘Mafia gangster’Credit: postofficehorizoninquiry
      Some of its staff can make it efficient and fair, others can make it sluggish and incompetent, while the worst people of all can make it corrupt.
      And the sheer size of certain institutions means there are plenty of hiding places for these human failings committed, often wilfully, by people who, as long as their lives are cushioned by job security, sick pay and a fat pension etc, don’t give a flying fig about the havoc they wreak on others.
      The jury’s out on whether Post Office investigator Stephen Bradshaw was useless or ruthless, but at the public inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal, he and his colleagues were accused of behaving “like Mafia gangsters” towards the postmasters wrongly accused of taking money.
      The gimlet-eyed Mr Bradshaw denies it, but he allegedly “hounded” one woman in more than 60 calls and called her a “bitch” in “extremely distressing” conversations.
      Surely it’s time for MPs – the cogs of that other inanimate body known as “Parliament” – to give ordinary people the power and resources to robustly defend themselves against these “institutional failings”?

      Seems like the kids’ summer commitments mysteriously vaporise if you suggest going to enjoy cocktails with them on a tropical beachCredit: Getty
      “BOOMERANG tourism” is reportedly a big thing for 2024 – with millennial adult children planning to rejoin their parents for holidays.
      Hmmm. Ask your kids, “Are you free in the summer?” and chances are you’ll get: “Not sure yet. What are you planning?”
      If you say, “a week’s camping in the UK” then they’re busy.
      But if you mention a tropical beach and cocktails, their commitments mysteriously vaporise.
      Luck of the drawers, Geri
      GERI Horner says she nearly missed out on early auditions for the Spice Girls after getting bad sunburn on holiday and a face full of blisters.
      But she adds: “I’ve always been a queue-jumper.”
      Geri Horner has revealed that her little hotpants were her key to stardomCredit: Getty
      So she called up the producers, who agreed to see her and, despite not being a trained singer or dancer, she says she “made up for it in enthusiasm”.
      Good for her. But one imagines there were plenty of other enthusiastic souls warbling and hoofing their way to wannabe stardom, too, so why did she make the cut?
      She adds that she was “quite quirky, in my little hotpants”.
      Mystery solved.
      TIP’S A CHOC SHOCK
      HAVING just spent a few days in New York, I was shocked by the level of tipping expected.
      It’s a form of legalised mugging.
      Tipping culture in New York is a form of legalised muggingCredit: Getty
      Even if you buy an orange juice “to go”, you’re handed a contactless machine that gives the minimum option of a 20 per cent sweetener to the till operator on top of the extortionate mark-up you’re already paying.
      Gulp.
      But the moment that rendered me utterly speechless was when I used a self-service checkout to buy a chocolate bar at Newark Airport, and even the machine asked me if I would like to leave it a tip.
      I told it not to bet on Chelsea winning the Premier League.
      WAHEY TO GO, GUYS
      A FAN of Morecambe and Wise lost his job at a bus company after managers failed to see the funny side when he and a colleague replicated the comedy duo’s famous kitchen “striptease”.
      It was meant as a “jovial Christmas act”, but he was sacked for “gross misconduct” and has subsequently taken CE Jeatt & Sons of Windsor to tribunal and won more than £50,000 in compensation for wrongful dismissal.
      A Morecambe and Wise fan has received compensation for wrongful dismissal after a bus company wasn’t fond of him recreating their ‘striptease’Credit: Scope Features
      Quite right, too.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      Who are these killjoys who suck all the fun out of life?
      They clearly didn’t get the M&W memo: “In this world where we live, there should be more happiness.” More

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      Kyle Walker having ANOTHER baby with 6-months pregnant wife Annie Kilner – after second child with Lauryn Goodman

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      ENGLAND love rat Kyle Walker meets estranged wife Annie Kilner — who is six months pregnant with their fourth child.It is the latest astonishing twist in their troubled marriage — after Annie, threw him out at Christmas when she learned he had fathered a second love child with model and influencer Lauryn Goodman.
      Kyle Walker is pictured with estranged wife Annie Kilner — who is six months pregnant with their fourth childCredit: Dan Charity – The Sun
      It is the first time they have been snapped together since Annie learned he had fathered a second love child with Lauryn GoodmanCredit: Dan Charity / Commissioned by The Sun
      Today they were pictured together for the first time since the split as Annie handed over their eldest son Roman to Man City’s Kyle, in Prestbury, Cheshire.
      Annie, who was not wearing her wedding band, was seen putting on a brave face.
      She is due in March and gave a glimpse of her bump.
      Kyle, 33, collected cases before father and son headed to last night’s Fifa Best Awards in London.
      READ MORE ON KYLE AND ANNIE
      At the midday drop-off, he and Annie chatted briefly before she hugged Roman, 12, and said goodbye.
      A source confirmed to The Sun: “Annie is six months pregnant with their fourth child. It should be a time of great joy and excitement.
      “Instead, she’s struggling greatly with the fall-out from his latest sex scandal.
      “She’s understandably fragile but doing everything to protect her children and prepare for the arrival of their fourth.
      Most read in Football
      “To his credit, Kyle is trying to put on a united front to limit the damage they have been exposed to.
      “It’s a little bit too late, but he’s trying.”
      The source said Annie told only a handful of friends and family about the pregnancy and was desperate to keep it quiet.
      They added: “She was distraught after speculation emerged at the weekend.
      “It’s every woman’s right to be able to announce they’re expecting — not someone else.
      “She was deeply hurt by what was said, especially at a time when her world is currently in free fall.”
      A source said Annie was ‘struggling greatly’ after Kyle’s latest sex scandalCredit: Dan Charity / Commissioned by The Sun
      Pregnant Annie is due in March and has tried to keep the news relatively privateCredit: Dan Charity / Commissioned by The Sun
      The drop-off took place at Prestbury’s Mottram Hall — where the Walkers wed in November 2021.
      The source denied claims Kyle was kicked out five months ago, and said he was given his marching orders after Lauryn told Annie the truth.
      Model Lauryn, who gave birth to Kyle’s son Kairo in April 2020, messaged stunned Annie a day after Boxing Day.
      Annie suspected he was the father of her second child but had no proof until Lauryn presented her with DNA results and legal documents proving her worst fears.
      Lauryn, 32, told her: “I don’t have two baby daddies. I have one.”
      She then forwarded a photo of Kyle secretly enjoying a playdate with their two children in a park.
      Heartbroken Annie banished £160,000-a-week Kyle as her family rallied around her.
      Kyle, who captained City in a 3-2 win against Newcastle at the weekend, is now living in a rented apartment nearby.
      He apologised to Annie last week after she confirmed she was “taking time away”.
      Kyle had previously been unmasked as dad to Lauryn’s first child Kairo, now three.
      He promised to have nothing more to do with Lauryn or his son.
      But in September 2022 he met her in secret at a lawyer’s office.
      The pair resumed contact and weeks later Lauryn became pregnant with their second child.
      She gave birth to a daughter in July and refused to reveal the dad’s identity but repeatedly teased it online.
      Influencer Lauryn told Annie over the Christmas period that her second child was fathered by KyleCredit: Splash News
      Kyle and Annie in happier times, prior to their wedding in 2021Credit: BackGrid
      At the weekend, Lauryn revealed why she delivered the news to Annie over Christmas.
      She said: “I kept saying to Kyle, ‘You need to tell Annie that you are our daughter’s father and you’re having a relationship with your children.
      “We need to start 2024 out in an open way. If everyone knows where they stand. they can make their own adult choices in life.”
      Lauryn said she did not want to cause “any more heartache” for Annie but said Kyle was too weak to tell the truth.
      She added: “I didn’t want them to split up but it had to be out in the open for all of our sakes.”
      Sources said Kyle and Annie’s marriage had been on the rocks in the months after Lauryn gave birth and that the latest scandal is the “final straw”.
      READ MORE SUN STORIES
      Annie is considering divorce and has hired Coleen Rooney’s Wagatha Christie lawyer Paul Lunt and public relations guru Rachel Monk.
      A source insisted Kyle was never in a relationship with Lauryn.
      Kyle was spotted still wearing his wedding bandCredit: Dan Charity – Commissioned by The Sun
      Annie is preparing for the arrival of her fourth child, and Kyle’s sixthCredit: Dan Charity – The Sun
      Kyle and son Roman at last night’s Fifa Best AwardsCredit: Getty More

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      Widow blocked from having Three Lions emblem on husband’s headstone as she needs King’s permission

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      A WIDOW’S plans to get England’s Three Lions on her footie-mad hubby’s headstone have been blocked as she needs the King’s permission.Tracy Bilclough promised John, who died in 2020 aged 60, the emblem would mark his grave.
      Tracy Bilclough planned to have the England logo engraved on her husband John’s gravestone, who was football madCredit: Roland Leon
      The engraving was blocked by a judge who told Tracy she would need the King’s permission to use the Three Lions emblemCredit: Roland Leon
      But a Church of England judge refused as the “stylized heraldic lions” belong to the Crown and they had to be removed from the gravestone in Stretton-on-Dunsmore, Warks.
      Retired carer Tracy, 63, has written to King Charles twice asking for his permission.
      Just two rows back from John’s grave is a headstone incorporating a Fleur de Lis, another heraldic symbol but one associated with the French royal family.
      Another nearby grave featured a thistle emblem, symbolising Scotland.
      READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS
      She said: “It just seems wrong that you can have a symbol of France or any other country you like but not one of England in England.”
      She added: “I feel bad for John. It feels like he’s been betrayed by the country he loved.
      “When I was forced to have the Three Lions sanded off, I cried my eyes out.”
      The judge told Tracy in his ruling that the lions are part of the Royal Arms of England.
      Most read in Football
      He added: “Unfortunately, all uses must be duly authorised.”
      Tracy has a year to appeal or get the King’s consent.
      She added: “It’s so disappointing to hear nothing back from the King.” More

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      Lauryn Goodman said she was ‘ready to finish them’ in texts before she fell pregnant with Kyle Walker’s 2nd love child

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      MODEL Lauryn Goodman vowed to torpedo Kyle Walker’s marriage just weeks before falling pregnant with the England star’s second love child.She texted a pal: “Ready to finish them” — then added laughing and heart emojis.
      Lauryn Goodman vowed to torpedo Kyle Walker’s marriage weeks before falling pregnant with her second childCredit: Splash
      Annie, 30, announced she was separating from Walker after he led a double lifeCredit: Refer to Caption
      Another message read: “Ask him if he wants to go with me again? I’m down for baby number 2 [five laughing emojis].”
      The texts were sent from the 32-year-old influencer’s phone in July 2022 while Manchester City and England defender Walker led a secret double life with her behind wife Annie’s back.
      Lauryn became pregnant three months later after a secret rendezvous in London.
      She gave birth to a girl in July last year.
      READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS
      She begged Walker, 33, to tell Annie the full truth, then took it into her own hands by revealing to her the day after Boxing Day that he was the father of their daughter.
      She also has a three-year-old son with him, from a brief relationship while Walker and Annie were apart.
      Last week, Annie, 30, announced she was separating from Walker.
      They have three sons.
      Most read in Football
      Lauryn told yesterday’s Sun on Sunday: “I didn’t want them to split up or cause harm but it had to be out in the open for all of our sakes.”
      But a pal was so angered by her comments that they handed the messages to The Sun.
      The friend said: “Lauryn is insisting that she never interfered in their marriage, but I beg to differ — these messages to me say the complete opposite.”
      Walker and Annie have three sonsCredit: Getty More

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      David Haye plans surprise career change after secret dates with Helen Flanagan

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      EX-boxer David Haye is planning a range of sun lotions — ­after accusing actress Helen Flanagan of reeking of fake tan.The former world champ, 43, has been linked to Helen, 33, who was his campmate in I’m A Celebrity in 2012.
      David Haye has big plans for branded merchandise including fake tanCredit: Getty
      We can reveal he has lodged papers with the UK’s Intellectual Property Office asking to ringfence the name “Haye” for ten years. He wants to sell cosmetics and toiletries including “sunscreens and suntan oils and creams”.
      Clothes, handbags and boxing gear will also be covered under the “Haye” banner, as well as sports and fitness classes.
      Haye previously said of the former Corrie star: “Helen is a real cute little chick, a bit ditzy, but she stinks of fake tan.”
      But last month it was revealed that the boxing champ had been enjoying ‘secret dates’ with the former soap star.
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      The pair became friends when they appeared on I’m A Celebrity in 2012, but recently matched on dating app Raya and sparks have reportedly flown.
      Helen, 33, met up for dinner with former champion boxer David — who had been in a ‘throuple’ relationship with girlfriend Sian Osbourne and pop star Una Healy.
      But it is understood Helen and David, 43, went on dates alone.
      David and Helen Flanagan are believed to have enjoyed a string of datesCredit: Dan Charity – The Sun More