For most football fans, it would be a dream come true — go along and meet your favourite player and ask him anything you want.

That is the deluded view that led me to be excited when I was sent to my first “mixed zone”,  where players are available for quick interviews as they walk past reporters when leaving the stadium after a match.

Bruised and battered from a lot of tactical shoving and suffering from a severe overdose of testosterone (not ideal when you’re a woman), I’m thinking more war zone than mixed zone.

Elbows fly as dozens of hungry newshounds battle for position in the hope of getting a juicy quote — or most likely yet another tired cliché — from the player of the moment. You have to pick your position: avoid standing next to a cameraman (that’s a big bit of equipment to be hit with, trust me I know) and avoid anyone who may have dubious personal hygiene (you are going to get very close to them).

Then all you have to do is get the players’ attention while they saunter past looking like they really can’t be bothered.

One cunning ploy that I have noticed several times, particularly by radio and television journalists, is to bring along a beautiful woman (who definitely didn’t spend the last 90 minutes cramped in the media tribune hunched over a laptop) to act as bait to hook the player for an interview. Once they have reeled him in with a few pleasantries, the men ask the ‘proper’ questions.

I look on enviously, wondering why I have my nose up someone’s sweaty armpit, a dead arm from holding my dictaphone at an impossible angle and cramp from standing on tip-toes in the middle of the big huddle of reporters. Oh, and I can’t breathe because I am crushed against the barrier that keeps the poor footballers out of harm’s way. Thankfully, I’ve got a quote.

Forget elbowing and barging, next time I’m coming armed with some sharp stilettos…

PHOTO: Czech Republic’s Michal Kadlec listens to journalists’ questions after a training session in Seefeld, June 4, 2008. REUTERS/Petr Josek

For full coverage of Euro 2008 see here

There’s just a few hours to go before the Czech Republic take on Portugal and the Koller question is foremost in my mind.

There is no disputing Jan Koller’s impressive goalscoring record - 54 goals in 88 internationals - so you can understand why coach Karel Brueckner picks him time and again.

The problem is that at 35, Koller has definitely slowed down and the only realistic way of him scoring is by using his height advantage (2.02 metres) in the box. He is never going to make darting runs or use dazzling footwork to score. He will either use his head or his bulk and it won’t be pretty.

That was all fine when Czech Republic boasted a fine array of creative midfielders - Pavel Nedved, Karel Poborsky, Vladimir Smicer - who could supply the big man with the perfect ball. Now they have all gone and, as we saw against the Swiss, the Czechs are left seriously lacking in midfield ideas and Koller barely got a decent ball.

Without taking anything away from Koller, isn’t it time Brueckner took a chance on some of the younger forwards in the team, perhaps playing two of them upfront instead of his preferred lone striker formation? Koller would be the perfect player to bring on as a late substitute when they’re looking for a goal.

Koller seems bound to be in the starting XI against Portugal but Brueckner has said there will be some changes.

What do you think would work best? Saturday’s goalscorer Vaclav Sverkos as a second striker? Euro 2004 top scorer Milan Baros alongside Koller? Or does young forward Martin Fenin have a role to play?

I guess we’ll see soon enough…

PHOTO: Switzerland’s Gokhan Inler (R) challenges Jan Koller at St Jakob Park in Basel, June 7, 2008. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

Scenes of riot police and bottle-throwing fans marred Wednesday’s UEFA Cup final in Manchester between Rangers and Zenit St Petersburg, who won 2-0. A Russian fan was also stabbed.

While police said it was only a small minority of supporters causing trouble, the sight of British football fans making headlines for the wrong reasons comes at just the wrong time – less than a week before tens of thousands of Chelsea and Manchester United followers head to Moscow for the Champions League final.

Should the Russian police be worrying about what might hit their capital city next week?

It seemed that Wednesday’s incidents were largely down to the breakdown of one of the big television screens in a fan park, so perhaps there is little to worry about.

Because of the visa issues and the expense of getting there, there are unlikely to be as many ticketless fans out on the streets in Moscow as there were in Manchester, but then again mix Russian vodka with those few trouble-seeking fans and things could turn nasty.

What do you think?    

Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson has been elusive over his retirement plans but with a possible double looming, should he start thinking about leaving on a high note if he manages to win this season’s Premier League and Champions League?

Ferguson, 66, has been at the club since 1986 and has brought nine league titles, five FA Cups and one European Cup to Old Trafford - will he ever feel he has won enough silverware?

He is a great example of why keeping the same manager for a long time can be effective - perhaps Manchester City owner Thaksin Shinawatra should think about this before he gives Sven-Goran Eriksson the boot after just one season in charge. After all, Ferguson took nearly four years to win his first trophy.

He was due to retire in 2002 but the lure of more success changed his mind.

When is the right time for Ferguson to call it a day?

Sonia Oxley, London

He has achieved something no other Chelsea manager has by taking the club to a Champions League final, but there is still speculation Avram Grant will be axed at the end of the season.

With a Premier League title still also a possibility, what more does the man need to do to keep his job?

Admittedly, he is working with a team put together by fans’ favourite Jose Mourinho but he has gone one better than the “special one” with Chelsea in Europe - with those same players.

He may lack Mourinho’s charisma but is that reason enough to not want him in charge? At least he also lacks the Portuguese’s arrogance and there are certainly a fair few neutrals out there who do not miss Mourinho’s regular TV rants.

On the other hand, Grant has yet to prove he can build a great team in the way Mourinho did, the flair is still missing and his tactics have been dubious at times.

Will Grant ever be “special” or will he be a victim of his predecessor’s popularity?

Sonia Oxley, London

PHOTO: Chelsea manager Avram Grant celebrates at the final whistle of their English Premier League soccer match against Manchester United, April 26 REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Sven-Goran Eriksson’s days as Manchester City coach seem to be numbered after his agent said the Swede was unlikely to still be at the club at the beginning of next season.

After a storming start to the season, defeats started creeping in but the end result is still a very respectable first season in charge and a special one for City fans as it included doing a rare double over city rivals United.

So will it be fair if he is shown the door? His agent said Eriksson would not resign, but perhaps he ought to cut his losses and get out of a club where owner Thaksin Shinawatra seems to air his frustrations to the media before discussing them with his coach.

Bookmakers have installed Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari as the favourite to be the next City manager, but would anyone want to take a job working for Thaksin after seeing how Eriksson has been handled?

And where could Eriksson go next?

Sonia Oxley, London

PHOTO: Manchester City manager Sven-Goran Eriksson watches the English Premier League match against Bolton Wanderers, Dec 15, 2007. REUTERS/Phil Noble

Fabio Capello must be cursing his bad luck as he prepares to name his first England squad.

Lumbered with David Beckham on 99 caps, Capello is grappling with the delicate question of whether to grant him a 100th in next week’s friendly against Switzerland.

The debate over the Beckham milestone is enough to make you forget that Capello actually has a rather more important matter to attend to - transforming a team who couldn’t even qualify for Euro 2008.

If he bows to sentimentality and plays the former England captain in recognition of his service, he will be accused of being weak by those who feel the shake-up of an ineffective team needs to start immediately.

If he leaves the influential midfielder out, Capello could prematurely face the boos and headlines that taunt England managers when results start going wrong. Whatever he does, it seems he cannot win.

What do you think? Should Capello win the fans’ favour by including Beckham despite his lack of match practice, after all it’s just a friendly and the guy has worked hard for his country over the years?

Or should Capello exclude him — as he did at Real Madrid — and concentrate on trying out some new faces who might restore England’s battered pride?

On the subject of new faces, there has been a lot of media speculation that Capello may give a “surprise” call-up to Reading striker Dave Kitson.

While Reading is not the usual place to find England players, it can hardly be a surprise if the England manager calls up the Premier League’s top-scoring Englishman, can it?

Sonia Oxley, London

PHOTO: David Beckham poses at a mobile phone launch in Beijing,  Nov.24, 2007 REUTERS/Alfred Cheng Jin