England left out in the cold for Euro 2012 as Ukraine spends millions to overcome fear and ignorance Hubschman thought the reason why England preferred to base themselves in Poland was because of prejudice and ignorance. Some western Europeans were "scared" of Ukraine, he said. In truth, scared may be too strong a word for our collective attitude to the land of the mail-order bride. Except, that is, when it comes to the cost of staying here, which - during the tournament at least - could be described as terrifying. Tales of widespread profiteering by hoteliers have been rife. A quick internet trawl reveals that one hostel owner in Kiev is advertising shared rooms for the night England play Sweden at £702 a head. And the accommodation is not quite of the standard Blanc and his squad will enjoy. Andriyi Shevchenko, the country's most famous player, explained that such have been the stories his phone has run hot these last few weeks. "Normally they call for tickets; now I have so many friends looking for rooms," he said. From England, from Ireland, from Italy they call. I have two apartments in Kiev and I am giving one during the tournament to family, the other to friends. It is a problem for our country. Such was the prevalence of attempted profiteering that Michel Platini, the president of Uefa, was moved to describe Ukraine as full of crooks and bandits. A comment which may go some way to explaining why the FA, normally well over-subscribed for tournaments, has sold just 3,500 of its 6,000 tickets for England's opening game. "This was an emotional statement by Platini," Markiyan Lubkivskyi, the Euro 2012 tournament director, insisted. Look, we are not hiding things, not everything is perfect. But I don't see any threats or risks; the hospitality of Ukraine people is wonderful. England supporters will love this country. This is just a market issue. If owners put up prices, no one will book them. Indeed, Lubkivskyi was anxious to point out that his organisation has just launched its own website, www.accom2012.com, which will direct visitors towards more reasonable offers from certified providers. "There is a big supply of accommodation available, anyone can easily book today, with prices varying from €11 to €280 [£9-£230] per person per night," he said. The most you will have to pay is €330 [£270] for a four-star hotel for the night of a semi-final. Plus, he said, there will be 3,000-head campsites in both Kiev and Donetsk, where visiting fans can stay for €20 a night. The government sanctioned more than £3.2 billion of spending on infrastructure projects to support the tournament. A busy swirl of construction is evident everywhere. The politicians regard this less as a sporting event than a geo-political shop window, offering the opportunity to reposition their country as a fully-functioning, western-oriented place to do business. "Unfortunately for 74 years we lived under a planned economy which ruined everything," explained Boris Kolesnikov, the deputy prime minister and the man ultimately responsible for the tournament. This Euro competition has given us the chance to bring things up to date. At Shakhtar's training ground they have already demonstrated that Ukraine can compete in the modern world. A shame some were not prepared to cast aside prejudice and take a look.