Marco Reus, Mario Gotze... and Usain Bolt?
It's an unlikely front three for Borussia Dortmund but on Thursday that was the case as they trained together.
While Reus and Gotze have seen it all with Dortmund, the sight of sprint king Bolt at their training complex would have been surreal.
Athletics legend Usain Bolt took part in Borussia Dortmund's training session on Thursday
The Jamaican is currently on 'trial' with the German giants via their common link with Puma
Bolt winds up to strike a ball with his left foot during Thursday's training session in Dortmund
The 31-year-old speaks with his potential new team-mates during while warming up
Bolt was clearly enjoying himself during the session - as shown by this smile on his face
The 100-metre world-record holder has long desired to play for Manchester United , and now that his athletics career is over, he is devoting more time to his other love.
And Dortmund have given him the platform to do so by providing him with a 'trial'.
The German giants and Bolt are both sponsored by sportswear giant Puma and it's through this link that this unlikely partnership has happened.
Bolt clearly enjoyed himself during the 'trial' as he got to know his potential new team-mates on and off the pitch.
The Jamaican was pictured honing his skills during training - which included the likes of Andre Schurrle and others that weren't selected for international duty.
Julian Weigl (right) was among many of the Dortmund players to greet Bolt upon his arrival
Fans' favourite Marco Reus speaks with the iconic figure before they headed out to training
Mario Gotze talks tactics with sprint king Bolt as he prepares for the first day of his 'trial'
Dortmund centre back Omer Toprak speaks with Bolt as he gets to know the Jamaican icon
Bolt was put through some physical tests beforehand - which Reus oversaw
Off-the-field, Bolt was given a tour of the club's vast facilities. He was seen greeting Julian Weigl and fans' favourite Reus during the pleasantries - while also speaking to centre back Omer Toprak.
The 31-year-old has never been overawed as an athlete but he seemed to be in impressed by the 81,360-capacity Signal Iduna Park.
Bolt, who will be leading a World XI team against Robbie Williams' England at Soccer Aid in June, will be training with Dortmund again on Friday.
That session at 9.30am GMT will be open to the public, albeit to a limited number.
Bolt has dreams of becoming a footballer after a stunning career in the world of athletics
The eight-time Olympic champion was impressed by the 81,360-capacity Signal Iduna Park
Usain Bolt is to have a two day trial at Borussia Dortmund where he says he will see if he is good enough to really go pro. (1:01)
Usain Bolt has told ESPN that his two-day trial at Borussia Dortmund this week will decide whether he can make it in professional football and said he has already asked Jose Mourinho for a chance at Manchester United.
Bolt, the eight-time Olympic gold medallist and world-record holder in the 100 metres, will travel to Dortmund on Thursday and participate in training with the Bundesliga club on Friday.
"That will determine for me, personally, if I continue or if I say, 'You know what? I'm probably not good enough,'" Bolt told ESPN at the Hublot Match of Friendship in Basel, Switzerland. "It's what happens in the next two days."
Bolt, 31, retired from athletics in August following the IAAF World Championships in London. He trained with South African side Mamelodi Sundowns in January and will participate in a charity match at Old Trafford in June.
"For me, I'm fast, so it's definitely kind of all about using my speed," Bolt said when asked about his playing style. "It's something that I've used over the years, actually playing with my friends and stuff, so it's something that I'm just looking forward to and we'll see what happens."
As for which position he would like to play, Bolt said that he sees himself playing out wide.
"I would like to play on the wing, on the left side," Bolt said. "That would be my favourite position to play, but most of the people always say I would probably play up top, so we'll see where it goes."
A huge United fan, Bolt said that he is hoping the trial goes well enough that he can approach Mourinho about joining the club.
"I've definitely asked him for a spot on the team, but as I said, I just want to wait until after the trials to really push and to really pressure," Bolt said. "It's something I said to him, and he said, 'If you're serious, we'll see what happens,' so let's see what happens [this week]."
Bolt was a guest of United at the 2011 Champions League final, in which they lost to Barcelona, and said then that he would like to join the club as a player once his sprinting career had ended.
United are 16 points back of rivals Manchester City, the runaway Premier League leaders, and they advanced to the semifinals of the FA Cup on Saturday, four days after being knocked out of the Champions League by Sevilla.
"It's not a great season [for United], but it's not as bad now," Bolt said. "I think we've improved a lot from last season. We've really done much better. We've played much better, so it's all about improvement and getting better players and getting the players to play better together."
And while Bolt said that he's a big fan of United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and he enjoys watching Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, who spent six years with United, he admitted his favourite player to watch is Neymar, calling the Paris Saint-Germain forward and Brazil international "a great winger" who has "proven over the years that he's one of the best."
Still, when it comes to the World Cup in Russia this summer, he acknowledged it won't be Brazil that he's supporting.
"The current thing right now to say would be to say Brazil, but I'm an Argentina fan," Bolt said. "Yeah. I support [Lionel] Messi when it comes to Argentina, yeah."
Harga pemain sepak bola kini sudah mencapai tingkat tertinggi. . Beberapa pemain Eropa bahkan didapatkan tanpa membayar, lalu kini memiliki harga pasar yang melambung jauh. . Berikut adalah daftar 6 besar pemain yang didapatkan oleh klub secara gratis, baik melalui akademi atau bebas transfer. . Ada Idola Kalian? #lionelmessi #harrykane #marcusrashford #lorenzoinsigne #robertlewandowski #saulniguez #tottenhamhotspur #barcelona #manchesterunited #napoli #bayernmuenchen #atleticomadrid
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It's always been Usain Bolt's dream to play professional football and now that he's retired from athletics, he's being given the chance to live that dream.
Bolt, who hung up his running spikes in August 2017, is due to participate in Borussia Dortmund's public training session on Friday in what's being labelled as his 'trial'.
And according to the 31-year-old Jamaican, with a bit of practise, he possesses the talent to make it in one of Europe's top leagues.
"The injury is now fine and I'm back fully fit," Bolt said. "In March we're going to do trials with Dortmund and that will determine what I do with that career, which way it goes.
"If they say I'm good, and that I need a bit of training, I'll do it. With training, I could be good.
"Me and [Paul] Pogba talk a lot. I watch and ask him a lot of questions. I want to play but it has to be in the top league. I'm not content to be average."
Whether Bolt is actually any good at football remains to be seen, with the 100m world-record holder also due to play in the charity match 'Soccer Aid' in June.
XAVI OFFERS REALITY CHECK
However, not everyone is convinced Bolt has what it takes to become a professional footballer, such as Barcelona legend Xavi.
Speaking to So Foot recently, the Spaniard said: "I love Usain Bolt, he's a great athlete, but with all due respect to him, he will never make any difference on a football pitch."
Ouch. Bolt played in the Hublot Match of Friendship 2018 on Wednesday evening alongside some football greats like Diego Maradona and Roberto Carlos, managed by Jose Mourinho.
He didn't make the desired impression, though. Fans who watched the game - or at least highlights of it - don't think Bolt is cut out for football.
Easy to see where they're coming from. Bolt looks pretty awkward when he plays and at 0:14, he squanders a simple tap-in with his favoured left foot.
The Jamaican is undoubtedly more suited to a bigger pitch because of his pace and physique, but his touch still doesn't seem to be quite there.
Xavi believes that Bolt lacks a footballing brain and unfortunately for him, all the speed in the world cannot make up for that.
Asked why the 31-year-old is wrong for football, Xavi added: "Because we cannot supplant mental speed and game intelligence with physical abilities. It's impossible."
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