Usain Bolt to Make Manchester United Debut in Charity Match

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JUNE 14: Paul Scholes and Andrew Cole of Manchester United Legends laugh as they celebrate with Louis Saha (number 8) after the first goal during the Manchester United Foundation charity match between Manchester United Legends and Bayern Munich All Stars at Old Trafford on June 14, 2015 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Dave Thompson/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JUNE 14: Paul Scholes and Andrew Cole of Manchester United Legends laugh as they celebrate with Louis Saha (number 8) after the first goal during the Manchester United Foundation charity match between Manchester United Legends and Bayern Munich All Stars at Old Trafford on June 14, 2015 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Dave Thompson/Getty Images)

The longtime Manchester United fan, Usain Bolt, will make his debut for the team in the Legends Charity Match against FC Barcelona.

World champion and gold medalist sprinter Usain Bolt will feature in the star-studded Manchester United team for their second leg of the Charity Match vs. Barcelona. He will play alongside other legends like Edwin van der Sar, Paul Scholes, Phil Neville, Dwight Yorke, and Denis Irwin when the match kicks off on September 2nd.

Manchester United won the first leg of the series by a score of 3-1 against a talented Barcelona squad. Former players included Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, and Nadal. Goals from Jesper Blomqvist, Karel Poborsky, and Dwight Yorke sealed the win for the reds.

Bolt is coming off a rather unimpressive performance at the World Championships in London. The Jamaican finished with a silver medal on the 100 meter sprint, and pulled up short in the 4×100 with an injury to his hamstring.

This has led to questions on whether the sprinter will be fit in time. While Bolt is optimistic, it isn’t known if he will play or not.

A source claims: “This has been his dream for many years. He’s desperate to do it as long as he can get over the injury.”

Bolt has never made a professional appearance in football, but has expressed his interest for a while now. He told the media: “I’m not gonna say I’m going to be the best footballer in the world but I’d be at a good level, I’d say. Maybe Wayne Rooney level.”

LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12 (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images for IAAF)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12 (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images for IAAF)

Bolt has since retired from track and sprinting, but may be looking to get back into the athletic field with a career in football. He certainly has the speed to be a phenomenal attacker, and a threat on the wing. Should United sign him, he could be a handy bench player for Mourinho to use at his discretion. While playing in the first team for Manchester United isn’t likely for Bolt, he could find himself in a lower league side.

Certainly a bit of optimism from the Jamaican, whose agent later admitted that Bolt would be more of a ”League One or League Two” level player.

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Bolt has since retired from track and sprinting, but may be looking to get back into the athletic field with a career in football. He certainly has the speed to be a phenomenal attacker, and a threat on the wing. Should United sign him, he could be a handy bench player for Mourinho to use at his discretion. While playing in the first team for Manchester United isn’t likely for Bolt, he could find himself in a lower league side.