Nancy isn't giving up on Sven

Sven Goran Eriksson has finally blown the full-time whistle on his eight-year relationship with Nancy Dell'Olio.

The former England football manager spent two days negotiating a separation with his fiery Italian lover at their £3million London mansion.

Yet as Miss Dell'Olio flew to Rome yesterday to begin a month-long Italian holiday, friends said that she was still refusing to give up hope.

Despite Eriksson's insistence that his mind was made up - he is said to have offered to buy her another house in London as part of a generous settlement - she refused to accept a permanent split.

Having stuck with Eriksson during the humiliation of his affairs with Ulrika Jonsson and FA secretary Faria Alam, she is understood to be distraught yet defiant.

'As of today, Nancy is saying that there is still hope for them,' says a close friend. 'She is veering between being in tears and flying into a rage, but even at this late stage she has vowed to do anything and everything to keep him.'

The signs, however, are far from propitious. Having spent the past three weeks in his native Sweden, where he retreated after England's dismal World Cup capitulation, the 58-yearold flew back to London on Thursday.

That night a meeting was convened at a fashionable Chelsea restaurant, with legal adviser Richard Des Voeux and agent Athole Still, to discuss the implications of a separation.

On Friday, he met Miss Dell'Olio at their Regent's Park home, which is up for sale. He outlined his plans for the future, which, according to sources close to the couple, do not include her. During two days of protracted talks he is understood to have told Nancy that he wanted to 'move on'.

Miss Dell'Olio, who despite her reputation as a fiery woman is described by those closest to her as 'deeply insecure', was left with little choice but to give in ... for the time being at least.