It was no surprise then that four years later Gerrard had Curran, by then his wife, stay away from the World Cup in South Africa.

Fabio Capello, then coach of the England soccer team, even labelled WAGs a “virus”. (Ironically, despite this action, England did worse than in Germany and left the tournament one round earlier.)

Today’s wives and girlfriends are less attention-seeking – no doubt inspired by some of the derogatory articles written about WAGs in the past – and many of them have no need for their famous partners. They can stand on their own accomplishments and have successful careers separate from their partners.

With this week’s arrival of English Premier League champions Manchester City in Hong Kong for a match against local side Kitchee on Wednesday, check out five of the most stylish and independent WAGs.

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Shakira

Probably the most famous current soccer player’s wife – now that Victoria Beckham’s husband David, the former Manchester United and Real Madrid player, has retired from the sport – is Colombian singer Shakira.

The 42-year-old is likely to be even more famous than her Spanish partner, Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, if Google is anything to go by. The first autosuggestion when searching for Pique is “Gerard Pique wife”, Shakira, who has sold 75 million records worldwide and won numerous awards including three Grammys.

The couple, who have been in a relationship since 2011, have two children together.

Oriana Sabatini

Another modern-day woman not defined by her relationship to a soccer star is Oriana Sabatini.

The 23-year-old girlfriend of Argentinian Juventus star Paulo Dybala is hugely successful in her own right.

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The singer, actress and model, who is also Argentinian, opened for Coldplay when the British group played at the Unico Stadium in Buenos Aires on its A Head Full of Dreams tour.

Melissa Satta

American-Italian Melissa Satta also has no need for a famous soccer player as a partner. There have been reports that she and husband Kevin-Prince Boateng, currently with Barcelona, whom she married in 2016, were divorced earlier this year but that they have since reunited.

Either way, Boston-born Satta, 33, is perfectly independent. She played soccer for a women’s professional team Helena Quartu and is an Italian karate champion. She has also starred in commercials and presented a host of television programmes in Italy.

Pilar Rubio

Pilar Rubio, 41, the Spanish partner of Sergio Ramos, Real Madrid’s long-standing captain and Spain international, is a former television presenter. She and Ramos have three children, Sergio, Marco and Alejandro.

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The couple, who had been dating since 2012, finally tied the knot this year. Their marriage got off to a rocky start when an earthquake struck Costa Rica during their honeymoon.

Antonella Roccuzzo

Despite Antonella Roccuzzo being the wife of arguably the greatest footballer ever, Argentina and Barcelona soccer star Lionel Messi, she has successfully carved a career of her own.

A childhood friend of Messi’s, she aimed to be a dentist or nutritionist as a child. To that end she studied nutrition and dietetics as well as odontology.

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Roccuzzo, 31, later turned to modelling but has not limited herself to just one career. Together with Sofia Balbi, wife to Messi’s Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez, she helped bring prestigious Argentinian footwear brand Sarkany to Europe for the first time, as co-owner of a store in Barcelona, although the shop has since closed.

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