The football - and sporting - sphere was sent into a frenzy last week after Usain Bolt scored not one but two goals on his professional football debut for A-League outfit Central Coast Mariners.
After ‘completing’ the athletics arena Bolt is now attempting to make a name for himself in the world of football.
The man with eight Olympic gold medals and 11 World Championship gold medals stuffed in his trophy cabinet is now the talk of the town in the football world, with a number of clubs reportedly chasing his signature in the aftermath of his brace in The Mariners’ 4-0 hammering of Macarthur SouthWest in a pre-season match last week.
The Jamaican legend is now deciding whether to continue to fight for an A-League contract, or instead take up an offer to join reigning Maltese champions Valletta FC, whose new UAE owners are bidding to lead the club into the Champions League.
Valletta managing director and CEO Ghasston Slimen told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (quotes via the Mail & Guardian):
“Usain Bolt broke the record in Beijing (Olympics) in 2008, and I have followed him for the last year-and-a-half on his football journey.
“We play the final of the Super Cup on December 13, which we will win… so can you imagine Usain Bolt lifting the Super Cup trophy 10 years after he broke the record in Beijing?
“This isn’t about money, this is about history. This is something that they will talk about in 50 or 100 years’ time.”
However, Mariners chief executive Shaun Mielekamp said in a statement last week:
“Usain Bolt will continue his indefinite training period with the Central Coast Mariners until any further notice.
The club will be making no comment on media speculation regarding the future of Usain Bolt.
"Full focus for the Mariners remains on our round-one away trip to face the Brisbane Roar.”
It will now be interesting to see what Bolt’s next move is. He previously had trials in Germany, South Africa and Norway while he was once a 16/1 shot to join Manchester United.
