Sven and Ulrika - is it a love match?

Of the many selection dilemmas facing England's celebrated soccer coach Sven-Goran Eriksson before the World Cup, one is gripping the nation today. Has the Swedish maestro chosen TV presenter Ulrika Jonsson as his latest head-turning companion?

Speculation about a romance between the two famous Scandinavians has been triggered by reports in today's Daily Mirror 3am column that the pair have been seeing a lot of each other after meeting at a London party a few months ago. As compatriots they have apparently found much in common. But does it go further than that?

The evidence could point either way. Sven, we know, is suave, sophisticated and has as keen an eye for the ladies as he has for the emerging talent in the Premier League. A father of two who is separated from his Swedish wife Ann-Christine, the coach is known to have been an item for the past three years with Nancy Dell'Olio, a 37-year-old lawyer he began a relationship with in Rome while coaching Lazio.

Ms Dell'Olio was among the crowd which saw England beat Paraguay at Old Trafford on Wednesday and she flew back with Sven by private jet in the early hours of yesterday. This might suggest that their long-distance relationship remains intact.

But as we know with Ms Jonsson, all things are possible. Last year she split from PR boss Simon Astaire but he was just one of a string of suitors won and lost by the 34-yearold who rose to fame in the late Eighties as a TV weather girl and became a household name after she was linked with Prince Edward although she always insisted they were merely good friends.

Soon afterwards she married John Turnbull, a TV cameraman, but they split three years later at which point it emerged that she was dating Phil Pietrowski, his best friend. The affair ended and Ulrika returned to Turnbull. When she gave birth to their son Cameron, now seven, she said his arrival had cemented the marriage. But a year later she announced it was over.

Ulrika had been having an affair with James Crossley, also known as Hunter, who starred in Gladiators. The relationship lasted two years.

In 1997, she dated £7 million Aston Villa striker Stan Collymore. In Paris during the 1998 World Cup, the pair had a furious row which ended with Collymore kicking her. Ulrika announced the affair was over.

The following year, she met Markus Kempen, the man she once described as "the love of my life" and the father of her daughter, Bo. but that too ended in heartbreak.

She is available once more and has an indomitable spirit which may well have attracted England's coach. But he is likely to have a more lasting relationship with the players he takes to Japan.