Former England ace Hendrie declared bankrupt

Hendrie: Loved the highlife

Former England international footballer Lee Hendrie has been declared bankrupt after racking up debts of almost £200,000.

The one-time Aston Villa favourite, who was capped by England in 1998, failed to attend a hearing at the High Court in central London which resulted in HM Revenue and Customs lodging the bankruptcy petition.

The 34-year-old - who once held a £24,000 a week contract with Villa - is believed to be selling his mansion Finwood Lawn, in Rowington, Warwickshire, for £1.7 million, having paid just less than that in 2006.

Known for a penchant of buying fast cars, Hendrie "loved the high life" according to former Villa chairman Doug Ellis, and picked up a reputation for being hard to handle as a player after crashing his Porches on the M6 while racing to catch a plane on the way to a European cup tie.

In 2003, the talented midfielder was hit with a 12-month driving ban for being one-and-half times over the drink-driving limit, while his private life also made front-page news when it emerged that his marriage to childhood sweetheart Becky had fallen apart just hours after a lavish £60,000 ceremony which forced the couple to cancel a £16,000 honeymoon to Mauritius.

On discovering that he had a teenage mistress, Becky scratched swear words into the paintwork of his Jeep-style Porsche Cayenne - a car bought for over £60,000.

She later branded him a “drunken womaniser”.