England’s qualification for the World Cup finals next summer in South Africa has prompted the latest surge of fear that fans will fall foul to ticket touts and black market scams. Tickets for guaranteed entry to England games have already been sold out and tickets are already on sale online for upwards of £3,000.

England often take a lot of fans to a major tournament and some travel without tickets hoping to buy them outside the stadium of each respective match. This makes England fans a classic target for touts who are very clever at producing fake tickets, which fans will sometimes pay a lot of money for in the hope of seeing a game.

Abta spokesman, Sean Tipton, said: “We’re saying that when you book you should do so with a company authorised by Fifa. In the past we have had instances of people booking trips for major sporting events and then finding that their tickets did not materialise.”G

“Travellers should heed the Foreign Office travel advice for South Africa. It’s not a good idea, for example, to tour Johannesburg at night,” said Tipton. “[But] there is no doubt that this is going to be a tremendous boost for South Africa tourism and it’s a great destination for Britons. It’s one of the few places where the pound has actually strengthened against the local currency of late. The food is good and prices are low.”

There are many different avenues that fans can go down in order to make sure they are not eventually ripped off. FIFA say that are going to set up a bar code system that will allow ticket holders to enter certain numbers on an online website, which will then tell them if the ticket is valid for entry to the match that the ticket says.

It will not be the first time that England fans have been greatly ripped off if the authorities do not a grip on the situation very quickly. There were examples in Germany and South Korea of when England fans paid thousands of pounds in order to see a match and then were denied entry based on the fact that the ticket said the wrong staidum or a letter was out of place. In one instance a man even spent £20,000 on a fake ticket and had no way of getting his cash back.

England romped to a 5-1 victory over Croatia last night and became one of the first teams to book their place in South Africa next summer. In a match that looked traditionally tricky for England to win, the new Capello generation sent shock waves around the world as both Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard got braces and Wayne Rooney scored for good measure.

It was one of the most dominant displays in recent memory by an England side, as every thing seemed to click from the very first minute. The match had been fired up before hand when Croatian coach, Slaven Bilic, said that England were a mediocre side and would never amount to any thing in the modern day.

Well he was made to eat his words as England never looked under real threat. Fabio Capello will be disappointed that his side gave a goal away but will be encouraged by the over all display. He said: “All the players in the squad who have been selected are really good. I hope that some of these players will not be injured. This is most important for me. The first target is reached as we had to get to South Africa, and now we have time to prepare for the World Cup.”

“The expectation around the England team is always the same, really high, but we have to play to win because we are England. We are one of the best teams in the world who can play against all the teams out there. We have to play always with the spirit we played this evening.”

“I’m pleased with the spirit of the group and their concentration in nearly every moment of the game. The play was sharp in every moment, both when we had the ball and when we didn’t. I never thought it would be easy, but I think that the forwards and the midfielders in this team are really, really good.”

Capello seems to have created a team that can genuinely rival any side in Europe and the world. The only time they have lost is in a pointless friendly when the players clearly have not been up for the occasion. By the time South Africa arrives, if you put England and Spain together it will be a completely different story and the likes of Fernando Torres and Andres Iniesta would probably be kicked up in the air and bullied before the match had even kicked off.

Two of the biggest football nations in the world are struggling to make ground in terms of qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup next summer. Both Portugal and Argentina, both archenemies to England, are failing to get into a good position in their qualification groups as the number of games left is running out.

England fans will be more than happy if this means that they do not have to play against either Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal or Lionel Messi of Argentina. Obviously you want the best players to be playing at the World Cup but unless both of these teams improve very quickly then they could miss out and create similar headlines to the ones that emerged when England did not qualify for Euro 2008.

Portugal coach, Carlos Queiroz, said: “As long as it remains mathematically possible, we will believe.”

Belief is important in football but the 1-1 draw against Denmark last weekend was a sign of Portugal’s lack of quality. Despite the fact that Ronaldo and a whole host of other high profile names played in that match, they could not break down the team that they are behind in group one by seven points.

Denmark looked a well organised and solid side and Portugal at times were lost and had no ideas.

As for Argentina, Diego Maradona, said: “There’s no cause for alarm.”

This is very hard to believe. Argentina are struggling to hold onto a play-off position at current and if results do not go their way in the next qualifying round of matches then it could see their chances of making South Africa all but over, which will be met by huge cheers from every fan in England.

What will make all of this news much more enjoyable to England fans is the fact that Maradona and Ronaldo are both hate figures in the country. Players such as Messi are universally respected for their non-egotistical style of play and the quality they always have. However, many still hate Maradona for the ‘Hand of God’ and pretty much every thing under the sun has been said about Ronaldo.

The point is that both teams are still in with a good chance of qualifying and until it is mathematically impossible, neither must be disregarded. Ironically England fans would probaby tell you they’d rather beat Portugal or Argentina at a late stage of the competiton as opposed to them not actually being there in the first place.

Fabio Capello has made a bizarre thank you to Slaven Bilic, the coach of Croatia. Bilic has been reported in recent days criticising the way England are run as a national side and saying that they are still clearly haunted by the Euro 2008 exit that his team dished out to them at Wembley.

Well Capello has said that he would like to thank Bilic as he now does not need to give a team talk ahead of the game tonight. Instead it has been rumoured that Capello will print out numerous copies of the Bilic comments and put them all over the England dressing room.

What makes Bilic’s comments even more mystifying is the fact that when the pair met in an early qualifying match in Croatia it was England who cantered to a 4-1 victory with Theo Walcott getting three of the goals, a player who can barely get into the senior squad at current.

Capello said: “I’m very grateful to Mr Bilic because I don’t need to motivate my players for the match. Thank you Mr Bilic. He tried to provoke a reaction and it is the best. I have no need to motivate my players after this. It’s fantastic assistance. My players are very determined, so thank you.”

“I like the English spirit. I saw this spirit in a lot of games we’ve played. It’s impossible to win without spirit. We suffered sometimes during first halves and played better second halves, and it would have been impossible to do that without spirit.”

“With me, Rooney, if I remember well, only once did he not make a good tackle. Only once. Afterwards he played always well. Provocation means nothing for Rooney.”

The spirit that Capello talks of is the same spirit that saw England come back from 2-0 down in a friendly against Holland to draw the match and beat Germany in Munich with a much weakened side.

So far the only teams that England have lost to are France and Spain, both quality sides and both in friendlies when the managers were toying around with their teams to try and find new combination’s.

Things are looking good and now that Bilic has added some extra spice to the encounter this evening, it could well turn out to be the very motivation that Capello talks of and the decisive factor that sees England become one of the very first teams to qualify for the  FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa next summer.

Fabio Capello is set to leave out Jermaine Defoe for yet another match when England play Croatia on Wednesday. There has been huge pressure on the England coach to play Defoe who has been in brilliant international form over the last few weeks.

Defoe has seemed like one of the only hungry players in an England shirt but Capello looks as though he may stick with Emile Heskey for the match that could seal England’s place at the World Cup next summer in South Africa.

Capello’s theory is a good one, Heskey is likely to pose a different problem to the Croatian defence. He is big, strong and tough, which will help as the Croatians are likely to come to Wembley with an aggressive mental attitude and style of play. Defoe will probably have to settle for a place on the bench again and simply wait for his chance to impress.

Capello said: “If he plays the second half, he has scored goals. That’s good. Perhaps he would be tired if he played from the first minute. He’s a really important player. But Heskey, for me, played a good first half. The players do a lot of movement around Heskey.”

Defoe himself aded: “At the moment, everything I hit seems to be going in. I’ll just keep working hard and see what happens. You don’t want to sit on the bench. You want to play every game for your club and for your country. If I don’t start but can come on and make an impact like I did against Slovenia, I will do that.”

Pundits and media personalities have been saying that Capello’s favouring of Heskey is too negative and could back fire on the side. However, really he just wants to secure qualification. The time to take risks and gamble will come next year in South Africa but for now Capello should and will play it safe to make sure England mathematically qualify. Then and only then should he think about toying around with the starting line up and formation.

The contrasts of Defoe and Heskey at their respective clubs could not be more different. Defoe seems to be an out and out starter at Spurs and scoring in the Premier League almost every week. Heskey on the other hand, is struggling to start for Aston Villa and cannot seem to find the back of the net.

It must be remembered that Capello is a very honest and good natured manager who will want Heskey to get a goal and more confidence. Defoe is ready and waiting and will be an adequate replacement.

Manchester United are preparing their first attempt to try and sign a player using the Cristiano Ronaldo transfer cash. United are reportedly piecing together a bid for Inter Milan striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, as they look to bring in a high profile target to replace their former Portuguese play maker.

United have been knocked by a lot of people in the game over the last two weeks or so because of their failure to move in securing the signatures of a lot of influential players who are all moving to Spain. They have just missed out on signing Karim Benzema from Lyon and Franck Ribery of Bayern Munich looks set to follow his fellow Frenchman to Real Madrid.

There is no dancing around the fact that United need a big and high calibre striker, as they are short up front. The arrival of Michael Owen at Old Trafford was nothing more than a stop gap move and they were always going to be linked with a big name player sooner or later. United are going to need a big player that has the ability to change a game instantly and someone that can bring other people into a match just by his presence at the top of the pitch.

Whether Ibrahimovic is the right person for United is highly debatable. Sir Alex Ferguson clearly rates the six-foot plus tall Swede but a lot of pundits would call it a bad move as he rarely turns up in a lot of big games. Furthermore he is well liked by Jose Mourinho who will be incredibly reluctant to let the player leave unless it is in a huge deal.

This is a deal that probably wouldn’t justify the player and United could well be better off looking at other options. The English champions still have a lot of time before the next season starts and they should not panic about trying to find a striker to lead their attack in the coming campaign.

It is easy to see why United may be interested in such a player because he does have a lot going for him. He is tall and very quick on his feet for a player of his height. United will need a big target man up front as they will not now be able to play their slick and aggressive passing football as Ronaldo was so integral to the success of this style of play.

Although a lot of people have called Ibrahimovic quite selfish in the past a move to United and England could end up revitalising his career. The player has already hinted that he wants to move away from the Italian game, which apparently does not suit his style of play and is too slow. He would probably be quite grateful for a move to English football and would therefore be a good signing as United are going to need someone who will sweat blood for the side.

The point is however that a lot of people are supposedly telling Sir Alex Ferguson to steer clear of any bid he is considering making for him. He could get a lot more for his money and the Swedish front man has not really done enough to justify such a huge price tag.

In a football world that is becoming increasingly dominated by cash, Inter are clearly trying to make the most out of a bad situation and United need to keep their business heads on otherwise they could well end up being ripped off.

Ferguson will have a long list of targets and he needs to weigh up how important each one is to his United side. It is important to remember that Ferguson will probably now be considering reinventing his side as he lost two very influential players so far this summer in Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez.

Ferguson has a very good idea of where he wants to take the current side and if Ibrahimovic fits into this philosophy then United will be hard pushed to find someone to match his characteristics. However, they really do need to proceed with caution because the Swede can be very temperamental at times and United will need someone who can raise his level of performance consistently.

Ibrahimovic cannot always do this easily and on a consistent basis and many will say that this, equipped with his slight ego, are the two main reasons why Ferguson should not go any where near the player. It will be interesting to see how the move develops as United could do a lot better.

However, if they do sign one of the top scorers in the Italian leagues then they will have to work very hard in basing the team around him. Ibrahimovic does not strike the ordinary fan as a player that can adapt himself to a team and this will make United’s job a lot harder as they restructure to have another go at European and domestic success.

It is impossible to say at this moment in time whether it would be a gamble that pays off because the move has so many advantages and disadvantages. The money being talked about is a lot of cash in the current climate and United should only spend it if they are absolutely certain that this player is the person to help them move forward.

They may let the move go because the doubts are too big to ignore. Being the top scorer in Italy is totally different to being the top scorer in England where the league is a lot more difficult to play in.

Ibrahimovic is a player that relies on time on the ball and not being pressured in order to make space and bring other players into the side. These are things that he would not get in the Premier League and they are things that mean United may be better off in going for another target. I’m sure with this player that if Real Madrid came in and tried to poach him, United probably wouldn’t be too annoyed.

With former Anfield Ace Michael Owen having signed for Manchester United, plus Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano’s reluctance to commit to the club, Liverpool fans are suffering from a bad dose of treason this summer.

What a difference a year makes. Last summer, Rafael Benitez threw Alonso’s future at the club up in the air by going public with his pursuit of then Aston Villa midfielder Gareth Barry, with the Spaniard being touted for sale to fund the deal.

With Alonso coming very close to sealing a move to Juventus, both midfielders were part of a long transfer saga which was only exceeded by Real Madrid’s annual quest to prize Cristiano Ronaldo away from Old Trafford.

After Madrid finally landed the Portuguese star already this summer, attention has swung to the best of the rest of midfielders in the Premier League, and unfortunately for Liverpool, speculation continues to surround their Spanish-speaking central pair.

Both Barcelona and free-spending Madrid have made no secret of their desire to bring Argentine Mascherano and Alonso to La Liga respectively. But with neither player rebuff any proposal, loyalty issues once again arise.

There have been suggestions that Alonso has still not forgiven Benitez for his shabby treatment last summer, when the midfielder felt unwanted and unloved as he was almost forced into a move to Juventus. But a deal for Barry, who has since joined Manchester City, never materialised and Alonso stayed at Anfield and produced his finest displays in a Liverpool shirt to date last season.

Whilst some believe Alonso is within his right to hold a grudge against compatriot Benitez for his lack of faith, but in retrospect, his boss may have done him a favour.

Suppose it was not a lack of faith, but the kick up the behind Alonso well and truly needed. It’s easy to forget that the season prior to last summer, the Spanish midfielder had his poorest season in English football, scoring just two goals in an injury hit season.

Injuries are a part of the game players must be prepared to deal with mentally, and it appeared that Alonso lacked passion and determination upon returning from the serious metatarsal injury which disrupted his season. Determination is key to winning the hearts of Liverpool fans, just look at the much-loved Dirk Kuyt.

However, the point is, Alonso didn’t do himself justice in the 2007/08 season, and with Barry forming a formidable partnership with Steven Gerrard for England, Benitez saw the potential. Something had to give, and on the back of a poor season, the boss saw Alonso as a scapegoat towards landing Barry.

After neither move came about, Alonso started the season a Liverpool player again and signalled his intent to prove his worth early on with some ferocious displays and the fine form continued throughout the season as Liverpool totalled their highest points tally in their Premier League history.

Now the tides have turned, and it appears Alonso is the one in control of his destiny, as his performances last season have warranted interest from Europe’s most talked about club this summer. But before Alonso sets his sights on the Bernabeu, he should take a look back at last summer with thanks, rather than resentment for Benitez.

The Liverpool manager brought out the world class player in Alonso once again, as his determination returned while he vowed to prove his importance to the Liverpool team. If it wasn’t for the wake up call, Alonso could be plying his trade for the rather less glamorous Juventus, and he certainly wouldn’t have a £35m price tag which is reportedly the club’s minimum asking price.

As for Mascherano, the little Argentine has had his head easily turned by rumours of interest from European champions Barcelona. It’s little over two years since Benitez pounced to rescue the 25-year-old from his nightmare at West Ham.

The tough midfielder joined the Hammers with Carlos Tevez in 2006 and while his compatriot basked in the glory of almost single headedly saving the club from the drop, Mascherano was inexplicably left to rot in the reserves.

Benitez saw the bargain potential however, and duly snapped him up initially on loan before his incredible displays earned him an £18.6m move from his owners Media Sports Investments. Since then Mascherano has established himself as a genuine world class midfield performer, and it is little wonder that a club of Barcelona’s stature are attempting to sound out a switch.

The Argentine should be flattered, but no more. Should he knock on the manager’s door asking for permission to speak to the Catalan club, Benitez should give him a stark reminder of where he was in January 2007.

But where has the loyalty in football gone? Michael Owen stood with a huge grin on his face as he posed during his unveiling as a Manchester United player, seemingly without a care in the world of his illustrious past at Anfield.

He lost the hearts of some fans when he left the club for Madrid in 2004, but lost their respect for ever by signing that contract. Owen has turned his back on the club twice now, and if Alonso and Mascherano truly wish to go down as Liverpool legend in years to come, they should stop flirting with Europe’s elite and get back to perusing their rivals for that elusive Premier League title.