What is Nancy Dell'Olio playing at? Having been let down numerous times by Sven the spectacled football manager she has now asked him to marry her - presumably so he can promise to humiliate her till death do they part.

It's difficult to imagine what Nancy saw in Sven Goran Eriksson in the first place but her dogged determination to hang onto him has become embarrassing.

When the couple first started dating Nancy may have been turned on by his power, the exposure he could offer her and his money (well it was hardly his dashing good looks and witty conversation was it?)

But surely now she has got everything she is going to get from him - apart from a broken heart and ritual humiliation.

After his two reported affairs Sven did little to heal the wounds he inflicted on Nancy - he made no public apology or declaration of love and failed to show her any affection.

After his first alleged affair with TV presenter Ulrika, Nancy rose like a phoenix from the ashes.

She donned a terrible, daring red catsuit for a night out and declared she felt 'fabulous' to the waiting media.

In reality she must have felt like staying indoors and crying her heart out but this was Nancy on top form.

Women around the world applauded her tough 'stand by your man' routine, if not her dodgy wardrobe.

This was a woman in control who wasn't going to let a kiss and tell tale ruin her relationship.

She maintained her dignity by fixing the cameras with her killer smile and steely gaze - it made you weep to think what treatment Sven was getting at home - you could tell he wasn't getting off lightly but neither was Nancy going to give up.

But her determination has slowly become desperation.

It seems it does not matter what Sven says or does, Nancy will simply put on her dark glasses, put up her hair and shrug off the rumours.

After the most recent reports of an affair, Nancy did move out of the couple's home but they were soon seen sneaking off together and now it seems she has proposed - obviously so she can be treated badly by a husband instead of a boyfriend.

To make matters worse Sven is having to think about the proposal - any offer of marriage that isn't met with shrieks of excitement and a positive answer is a worry.It's just another slap in the sun-tanned face for Nancy who is hanging on like a dog with a bone.

What at first seemed like devotion and strength is beginning to look like a lack of emotion and simple naked ambition - if she'd only shed a tear I'd feel a bit more sympathy for her.

If she is driven by ambition what has Sven left to give her - apart from a bad name.

In her book Honest, Ulrika failed to explain exactly what Sven had to offer a woman - the fact they were both Swedish seemed to be the basis of their romance.

Meanwhile reports of his second affair included accounts of him refusing to seduce a woman until he had stacked the dishwasher - we all want a domesticated man but there is a time and a place!

Nancy's celebrity has been boosted enough by the Swede for her to go it alone now - she could cash in on her name by appearing on a couple of reality shows and maybe even fronting some madcap fashion items on daytime telly.

But if she hangs around Sven for much longer he will become a liability.

Advertisers and programme makers will run a mile from this strong, independent woman who has turned into a pathetic still-single shadow of her former self.

How sad it would be if the Sven and Nancy pantomime of the last few years had really all been for nothing - not even true love.