Give me £20k a month for our son, Vanessa Perroncel tells Wayne Bridge
FOOTBALLER Wayne Bridge and ex-lover Vanessa Perroncel came face-to-face in court yesterday as they battled over maintenance payments for their young son.
The estranged couple spent almost six hours behind closed doors at the High Court, thrashing out a financial deal for the care of three-year-old Jaydon.
French model Miss Perroncel was demanding an increase in the reported £3,000 handed over each month by Bridge, who earns £88,000 a week playing for Manchester City.
Sources claimed she was seeking as much as £20,000 a month.
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Last night, they were thought to have reached a private settlement after both parties left the court smiling but without comment.
The dispute began after it emerged that Miss Perroncel, 33, had a fling with Bridge’s former Chelsea and England team-mate John Terry.
Terry, who was stripped of the England captaincy over the affair, allegedly got Miss Perroncel pregnant and arranged for her to have an abortion.
Yesterday’s hearing in central London followed Bridge’s withdrawal from England’s World Cup squad to avoid lining up alongside his former close friend.
Last month Bridge even refused to shake Terry’s hand prior to the Premier League game between Chelsea and Manchester City in London.
The court proceedings were complicated by Bridge’s belief that Terry had given Ms Perroncel £800,000 to buy her silence over the affair.
Her spokesman Max Clifford denied the pay-off claim.
Both parties arrived early at court and remained long after it was closed to the public. Ms Perroncel was first, dressed in a black blazer and skin-tight slacks, five-inch heels and carrying a black Chanel handbag.
Bridge, 29, looked smart in a light grey, checked, three-piece suit with white shirt and black tie.
Both were flanked by legal representatives, while Ms Perroncel was also shadowed by a burly minder in a long black overcoat.
Bridge walked into court carrying five ring-binder files packed with legal documents.
Lucy Stone QC, representing Bridge, and Jonathan Cohen QC, representing Ms Perroncel, both declined to comment. Asked about the outcome of a first, private hearing before District Judge Peter Greene, Miss Perroncel said: “Am I going to tell you? Really?”
Her former lover simply smiled and ignored the question.
But as a planned second, public hearing was cancelled, it became clear the pair were desperate to reach a settlement.
Sources close to Bridge claimed he had offered her £10,000 a month and a luxury home but that she wanted twice that amount plus an exclusive London property.
Although Bridge split from Ms Perroncel in July, he felt deeply betrayed that she and Terry began their affair so soon afterwards.
A source said: “He loves his son and wants to be part of his life. But he wants nothing to do with her.
“He felt hurt and betrayed by her, but now he’s angry and is determined not to be taken to the cleaners.”
But a friend of Ms Perroncel said: “Vanessa is not daunted by the prospect of facing Wayne in court.
“She will walk into court with her head held high and fight for a fair settlement.”
