Madonna and Ritchie 'destined to be friends'

THE woman who brought Madonna and Guy Ritchie together claimed today the pair will remain friends despite their increasingly bitter divorce battle.

Trudie Styler, wife of singer Sting, said she believed they would "work it out". Styler, who is godmother to Madonna and Ritchie's eight-year-old son Rocco, said that although the pair had been "struggling for a while", she thought their split would end amicably.

Speaking on TV talk show Access Hollywood, she said: "They're both dear friends of mine and all good things sometimes come to an end. I'm sad when great things come to an end, but they both need to recapture their lives. I think they're destined to become great pals.

"They're both big enough people to become great friends in time and I'm sure that they will for the sake of their kids, if nothing else."

Styler and Sting introduced Madonna to Ritchie at a dinner party in 1999. They married the following year at Skibo Castle in Scotland. Last week they announced they were divorcing after seven and a half years.

The pair are reportedly worth around £312 million and own homes in London, Los Angeles , New York and a 1,200-acre estate in Wiltshire.

They have two children Rocco and three-year-old David Banda, who was adopted in Malawi in 2006.

Madonna also has a 12-year-old daughter, Lourdes, from a previous relationship with Carlos Leon.