The lonely life of WAGs in the Middle East as Ellie Watkins flees Saudi Arabia due to missile strikes - with Riyad Mahrez's partner reduced to tears and Kate Ferdinand sheltering in her basement

Just this week, Ellie Watkins, wife of seemingly now-former England striker Ollie, was forced to flee her home in Saudi Arabia after deadly missile attacks in the Middle East.

It was a matter of months ago that one of the Three Lions' most popular WAGs had turned her life upside down to move to Saudi Arabia. Ollie, after six years at Aston Villa, had opted to sign for Al-Hilal, and his family would go with him.

The Watkins family have two young children – Amara, five, and Marley, three. Ellie initially admitted she had broken down in tears over the move but later felt 'everything was coming together'. Now, she's fleeing – and leaving her husband behind.

There's still a grey cloud surrounding moves from Europe's top leagues to the Saudi Pro League. Transfers are still met with claims that they are for the money; there are human rights issues in the country; and some call it sports washing.

Few openly admit that they head there for the life-changing sums on offer. Maybe they don't. Jordan Henderson insisted he was keen to see the league grow and Watkins himself said the standard is as good as the Premier League. Cough. But the massive salaries on offer can't be too off-putting.

Watkins is believed to have nearly quadrupled his £130,000-a-week pay to around £480,000-a-week, tax free. It will set up his family for generations. Not that his old wage packet wouldn't have done. But he's now not competing at the top level, he's lost his spot in the England squad, and, according to Ellie at least, his family have been in danger.

Ultimately, one key question remains. Is the money – or any other perceived benefits – worth it?

Ollie Watkins and wife Ellie moved to Saudi Arabia in the summer - but Ellie has now left (Source: Instagram/Ellie Watkins)

Taylor Ward, Riyad Mahrez's wife, broke down in tears over their move to Saudi Arabia 

'We've had a bit of a plot twist,' Ellie said in a post on TikTok this week. 'I have come back to the UK for, hopefully, a little bit. I don't actually know when.'

Major airports in Saudi Arabia are operating reduced services after a missile attack by Yemen's Houthi movement on Riyadh's airport killed 13 people. Two people were also killed after an attack at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.

'There's just a little bit of conflict and things going on over in Saudi and we basically decided just to stay here until it calms down,' Ellie added. 

'I felt like I needed to do that for the kids so there is some form of normality until we can get back out there and all be together.'

For the footballer themselves, they have something to focus on. Earning the money, for one, and playing, too. For the partners, often tasked with doing more for the family and not having to focus on a job when they move, it's tougher.

Ellie isn't the first and she won't be the last. Taylor Ward, wife of former Manchester City forward Riyad Mahrez, was left in tears when she was told she'd be heading to Saudi in 2023. 'It's part of the game, innit', Mahrez famously responded on Prime Video's Married to the Game.

Throughout the series, Ward opened up about not wanting to move to Saudi Arabia – including how challenging it was to find a house and her shock over women not being allowed in the hotel pool – even though she doesn't like swimming or getting her hair wet. She went with young daughter, Mila.

Ward later revealed that Mahrez was living in a hotel because they hadn't found a new home, and she waited in England. 'He didn't want us to go out there when we're in a really small hotel room - it's too hot at the moment to go outside,' she said.

Ward admitted to having a reality check about life in Saudi Arabia following Mahrez's move

'And obviously we don't really know the area. So I'm just going to go back and forth for a bit until we've got somewhere stable to move.

'I don't think people understand the stress of it. I think it's a lot easier for the boys than it is for us. They move to Saudi, they move into a football club, they've got friends.

'For me for example you literally have to start all over again in a different country or place where you don't know anyone and it's not always easy just to make friends and adapt.

'I better get used to this because I have no mates. All my friends are my primary school friends and high school friends. I've not really had to make new friends since then, which is crazy. It's a crazy thought that I'm going to have to start trying to make new friends.' 

When Henderson transferred to Saudi Arabia for his short-lived stint at Al-Ettifaq in 2023, his family went with him but they lived over the border in the more liberal island nation of Bahrain.

Daily Mail Sport went to investigate their life out there and discovered some shocking details. 

He spoke to one English player out there who said his partner had been hissed at by women in shopping malls just for wearing shorts while on a visit. She didn't stay in the country for long.

Rio and Kate Ferdinand were stuck in Dubai lockdown while the country was targeted by missiles (Instagram/xkateferdinand)

The Man United legend, alongside wife Kate, 34, moved their life to the UAE in August last year, but the area was targeted by Iran

Then there's the Ferdinands. It's a little different in their case – Rio is long-retired, and the family opted to move to Dubai two years ago.

But, earlier this year, he and wife Katie returned to the UK with their children for a 'nervous system reset' amid the conflict in the Middle East.

The couple fled the city in March after 'scary' Iranian drone attacks began in the UAE and they had been forced to shelter in their basement. They would return a month later.

'I've got to be honest guys,' she said. 'It's been a bit of a scary situation but at the same time weirdly enough I've felt very secure and looked after. My studio has become my bunker.

'We were advised to go into the basement on the first night of all the noise started and we were down here sleeping with duvets and stuff. We are utilising the space wisely.'

It all comes down to weighing up the positives and the negatives. There's more money, there's less tax... but major human rights issues and the potential for war. Is it really worth it?

It's not easy to move thousands of miles from home, in many cases with young children, and adapt quickly. But the reality is sometimes stark. 

Ellie Watkins is the latest WAG to have headed out to the Middle East and struggled. There will be more to come. It appears she isn't sure if it's 'worth it' right now.