LIVERPOOL MANAGER BRENDAN Rodgers has begun a bitter court battle with his estranged wife Susan over the carve-up of their property empire — which consists of 102 houses.
According to the Belfast Telegraph, in the divorce settlement, Susan Rodgers is demanding 50% of the property portfolio and half of Rodgers’ future earnings, which could rise to £20m by the time his Liverpool contract runs out in 2018.
Even if their American owners decide to do-away with Rodgers, he is likely to be paid the remainder of his contract. That means the divorce settlement could potentially cost the Anfield boss a fee somewhere in the region of £8.5m. The value of each of the 102 rental homes must now be assessed.
The pair met while Rodgers was a footballer at Reading and spent 24 years together, 14 of those as a married couple. They have two children, a 17-year-old daughter and a 20-year-old son that is currently on the books at League One side Swindon.
The 42-year-old Ulsterman has reportedly undergone a major image makeover since the couple split, spending thousands on whitening his teeth and losing weight. He now lives in a £1.2m Merseyside apartment and has been dating 31-year-old Charlotte Searle, a former employee of Liverpool FC.
The messy dispute will now be decided by the court, who will rule on how much of Rodgers’ future salary his estranged wife is entitled to and for how long.