Beware, the formidable MRS Carrick: KATIE HIND reveals for the first time how wife of Man United’s new manager has secretly been at the heart of football’s biggest scandals

To the outside world, the infamous Wagatha Christie saga involved just the two antagonists at the heart of it: Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy.

The pair were at one another’s throats for more than two years before they came face to face in a spectacular High Court showdown that dominated headlines until Coleen won the battle.

But I can reveal that behind the scenes there was a third, much more understated Wag who has avoided the limelight that Coleen and Rebekah have basked in. This is Lisa Carrick, the wife of former England and Manchester United star Michael.

A close friend lives near the Carricks and Rooneys in Cheshire says that Lisa was Coleen’s ‘rock’ as she took on Rebekah in the explosive legal clash.

As readers will remember, Rebekah sued Coleen for defamation after she sensationally claimed that Rebekah had been leaking stories about her to the Press on Instagram. Coleen was eventually awarded damages and almost £1.2million in legal costs.

Sources close to the pair say that it was Lisa, now 44, to whom Coleen would turn in her torrid hours of need during the gruelling saga.

‘Throughout the fallout, there were numerous times that Coleen found herself at the end of her tether,’ says the friend. ‘Coleen was pushed to breaking point and she struggled to cope. There were times when people asked Coleen directly if she had done the right thing to out Rebekah the way she did on social media, but not Lisa – she remained supportive.

‘It was Lisa who kept her going: they have the most lovely friendship. She was a secret weapon behind the scenes that nobody saw, but had huge impact.

‘Lisa was an unbelievably good friend to Coleen through the trial. Whether it was dashing round for a cup of tea with Coleen, or being on the end of the phone for a rant, she was the best mate Coleen could have wished for. She was steely, not someone to be trampled on – and she passed that on to Coleen.’

And Lisa’s grit and loyalty are set to come to fruition again as her husband Michael is unveiled as Manchester United’s new caretaker coach. For him, it is a dream come true, having played for the team between 2006 and 2018 after he signed from Tottenham Hotspur.

During his time with the club he played with Wayne Rooney, along with the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Cristiano Ronaldo. As Michael and Wayne became close, so did their partners.

Like so many before him, Michael has huge shoes to fill, including those of his own manager, Sir Alex Ferguson who was at the helm of Man United from 1986 to 2013. Michael is set to replace Darren Fletcher who stepped in as caretaker manager after the team sacked Ruben Amorim on January 5.

And Lisa, who has two children called Louise and Jacey, is about to take on one of the biggest roles of her life: the First Lady of Old Trafford.

‘As they say, behind every successful man is a woman who enables him to do his job,’ says my source. ‘And that’s Lisa.’

Indeed, few know him better than Lisa, who began dating Michael when they were just 15 years old after meeting at school in the mining town of Wallsend, Tyne and Wear. As he embarked on a career as a Premier League footballer, signing for West Ham United in 1999, Lisa remained loyally by his side.

‘Lisa had her own Pilates thing going on,’ says a friend. ‘She got on with that, she didn’t want to leech off of her man.’

From the beginning of Michael’s career, Lisa tried to stay out of the spotlight as much as possible, but in 2006 – then Lisa Roughead – she made headlines along with other Wags during the German World Cup. Lisa was seen shopping and partying with Coleen, Victoria Beckham, Cheryl Cole and Frank Lampard’s ex-fiancee Elen Rivas in now-infamous scenes in the quaint town of Baden-Baden in southwestern Germany.

A year later, she and Michael married at St Peter’s Church in Wymondham, Leicestershire, where guests included Michael’s Spurs teammate Robbie Keane and his wife Claudine. Their ceremony took place on the same day as other footballer’s weddings, including Steven Gerrard and his partner Alex and Gary Neville and his wife Emma.

Lisa was pulled into the spotlight again in 2014 when she lambasted former Manchester United star Roy Keane on Twitter after he criticised her husband’s post-match interview, likening it to the team’s lacklustre performance in their 2-0 Champions League defeat to Olympiacos.

Keane said: ‘That interview was just like the performance – flat. He should say a bit more, have a bit more urgency, even in the interview.

‘That just reflected United’s performance tonight – flat, with no urgency.’

This prompted Lisa to retaliate with: ‘Roy Keane what a **** [sic] says anything to provoke a reaction.’ But after the post gained attention from hundreds of thousands across social media, Lisa later deleted it.

These days, Lisa primarily works for the Michael Carrick Foundation, a charity established by her husband to raise money for disadvantaged young people.

And last summer she was seen enjoying a sunshine holiday to Ibiza with Coleen and their husbands. The women were spotted frolicking in the sea near the island’s exclusive Beachouse Ibiza club.

The couples also regularly enjoy nights out in the trendiest bars and restaurants in Cheshire. Yet, while Coleen is about to open the doors of her £20million mansion to Disney+ viewers for her fly-on-the-wall documentary, Lisa is so adamant on staying away from the limelight that even her Instagram is set to private.

‘Coleen and Lisa are so close, they went through all of the years of their husbands playing for Manchester United and England together,’ said one source.

‘They navigated the fame thing, the Wag thing, becoming mums.’

Now though, it’s Coleen’s turn to be the shoulder her friend leans on as Lisa’s husband takes on a role infamous for being the football industry’s most poisoned chalice.