5 Brilliant ways WWE could book Paige's return

Paige's journey outside of WWE for the past year or so has been nothing short of a nightmare. If she isn't grabbing the headlines for the unfortunate online leaks, she's filmed standing by her boyfriend, watching as he pours scorn on the company she is currently contracted to, or - worse still - spotted backstage with him during TNA tapings.

In short, rehabbing from a serious neck injury these past few months has been a PR nightmare for Paige instead of a therapeutic road to recovery.

But while most of her fans have given up hope that she will ever come back to the WWE, the anti-Diva herself re-ignited rumours that her return is a case of 'sooner rather than later' in an interview a few days back.

And despite falling out with talent before (because surely Paige's standing has gone for a toss in his eyes), Vince has shown himself to be perfectly willing to work with them again should it make sense for business.

Should a return to WWE programming materialise in the near future then, here are some innovative ways to introduce her back that will surely provide a bump in ratings.

Here are 5 brilliant ways in which WWE could book Paige's homecoming.

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#5 Storyline against Stephanie McMahon

Using real life tension for a storyline almost always equates to good business

Triple H's most vocal detractor of late has been *drum roll* ....none other than Alberto Del Rio, of course!

And the fact that he is Paige's beau, the love of her life... her Amor de su vida... is an interesting wrinkle that can ironically aid in her WWE career, rather than undermine it.

Both Hunter and Stephanie McMahon have been off WWE programming since WrestleMania 33 concluded, and are - perhaps - waiting for the right storyline to resurface for.

And although Paige didn't publicly endorse Del Rio's drunken video rants against her boss, she was still standing by his side through it all - almost in silent approval.

If that isn't material for a feud, I don't know what is.

Both women are driven, passionate about what they do and fiercely in love with their respective men, who it just happens, are at odds with one another.

Assuming that the WWE doesn't bring back the Authority angle and have Stephanie and Hunter butt heads with Kurt Angle(oh, please no!), inserting her into a storyline with Paige could prove to be a refreshing creative decision.

For one, it would be easy for the fans to buy into it, knowing of the background tension between Triple H and Alberto Del Rio, and it would once again establish why we fell in love with Paige's Anti-Diva character in the first place.

#4 Challenge Naomi for the SmackDown Women's Title

SmackDown Live needs more legitimate challengers for the Women's Title

Naomi seems to be in the middle of the run of her career right now and that doesn't seem likely to end when she faces off against Natalya at SummerSlam.

Perhaps the extended Title reign for Naomi stems from WWE's intention to lend some freshness to the Title picture on SmackDown, instead of having Charlotte Flair predictably dominate the scene.

Especially because of that, having Paige return to challenge Naomi for the Title makes a lot of sense.

Although WWE seems to have put off working a program between Charlotte and Naomi for the time being, everyone knows that no one among Lana, Tamina, Natalya or even Carmella for that matter, is a viable long-term rival for the Champion.

In that sense, the SmackDown Live women's roster is a little unheralded, and the addition of Paige could go a long way in addressing that issue.

#3 Balancing the scales against Nia Jax and Alexa Bliss

Sasha Banks needs all the help she can get against Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax

If Nia Jax earns the right to face Alexa Bliss for the Raw Women's Championship at SummerSlam, it would be present a scenario largely reminiscent of the time NWO ran amok in WCW.

A slimy, glory-hogging champion flanked by glad-handing friends, with the Title pinballing in between them.

And with Bayley sidelined due to an unfortunate shoulder injury, Sasha Banks - the only Woman in the roster with the ability to disrupt the Nia-Alexa nexus - also finds herself on the wrong side of the numbers game.

The stage couldn't be set any more perfectly for Paige to return and help the Boss against Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax.

Sasha Banks could really do with the support and with the audience tiring of Bayley's clean-cut babyface shtick, Paige's on-the-edge persona could provide welcome respite on that front too.

#2 Turn the Paige

Paige's public image has surely taken a turn for the worse in the past year

Since the WWE has shown themselves perfectly willing to tap into the vein of realistic, non-kayfabe sentiment from its fans, paying heed to the way Paige is being perceived by them right now would be a wise move in facilitating her return.

For the most part, although they do love her so, there seems to be a sense of bitterness surrounding the Anti-Diva today.

Why isn't she in the WWE? Why is she still with Alberto Del Rio? Why is she appearing backstage at TNA tapings?

And why on earth has the promising career of a fan-favourite spiralled out of control to the point where she's out of a job, with a man who's clearly not good for her (according to most keyboard warriors, that is) and nearly picked up by the cops for domestic battery?

All in all, the Paige who took time off from the WWE to recuperate and heal up her neck injury isn't the one who's a negative PR magnet today. And much of it wasn't even her fault, what with the brutal backlash that ensued after compromising adult videos of her having intercourse with former boyfriend Brian Maddox and Xavier Woods of the New Day were released on the world wide web.

Clearly, Paige's image has become more touchy and edgy than ever before. And although returns are usually greeted with massive pops, this could be the one situation when a return as a heel - or at least a dark, brooding character - may make more sense after all.

#1 Appearance with the Rock at WrestleMania

A segment with the Rock could get Paige immensely over with the WWE Universe

It was widely rumoured that the only reason why Paige's WWE contract wasn't already terminated after a spate of incredibly bad PR decisions was due to the lucky chance that Rock's production house was working on a biopic about her life during that time.

If Paige is to return to WWE programming then, dovetailing her comeback with a one-off Rock appearance at a big event - perhaps even WrestleMania - could really garner interest and traction for the movie.

Consequently, it could also get Paige over massively with the fans as she would get a direct rub from the Rock.

I mean, the Great One has shown himself perfectly capable of sharing the limelight with a woman in the past, creating a timeless WrestleMania moment with Ronda Rousey.

And while we're discussing his recent record at the Show of Shows, let's also square up to the fact that a segment with Paige cannot possibly be worse than his 16-second squash of Erick Rowan either, can it?