No bolt from the blue: Track & field icon Usain Bolt admits he’s ‘got that itch’ but rules out comeback, praises ‘machine’ Ronaldo

The fastest man in history, Usain Bolt, has ruled out making a comeback but admits he has "got that itch" to test his competitive mettle, while the Jamaican icon has also given his thoughts on Cristiano Ronaldo's Man Utd return.

Bolt, the eight-time Olympic champion, retired from track and field in 2017 and remains the holder of the 100m and 200m world records – and while his legacy is neatly secured in the history books, the 35-year-old admits that he is experiencing the competitive itch to get back to the track.

But in words which are the antithesis to everything Bolt stands for: not so fast.

"It's too late. If I was going to come back it would have been to be for this Olympics," Bolt told BBC Sport. 

"When I told my coach I was going to retire, he sat me down and said, 'when you retire, that's it. I'm not doing any comeback tours, nothing. So make sure you are ready to retire'.

"I remember I went to him in 2019 and said, 'what do you think about coming back for the Olympics?' And he looked at me and said, 'don't even start'.

"So if it's not my coach, I'm not going to do it, because I believe in him and if he says no, it's no – but I've got that itch, though."

That itch has been apparent throughout much of the past four years. Bolt attempted to switch gears and pursue a career in professional football but turned down contracts from clubs in both Australia and Malta.

Players from the Australian club in question, Central Coast Mariners, weren't quite so enthusiastic about his potential addition, with forward Andy Keogh describing Bolt's first touch as being "like a trampoline".

Bolt, who had also expressed interest in trying his hand as a wide receiver in the NFL before reversing his decision due to the potential injury risks involved, admitted in the past that his primary desire was to one day represent Manchester United – a dream that seems to be dead in the water.

"For me, if I could get to play for Manchester United, that would be like a dream come true. Yes, that would be epic," he told The Guardian in the year before he announced his retirement from the track.

If Bolt wasn't able to get his hands on the, ahem, 9.58 shirt at Old Trafford, he says he is overjoyed at the new man who will occupy the club's famous number 7 jersey.

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"It's a massive deal to see him back," Bolt said of Cristiano Ronaldo's homecoming to United.

"Cristiano demands a lot, so he will demand a lot from these players and it will only make them better. He's on a different level; he is a machine.

"I think he will play until he's 42 because he will always be so fit and on a higher level to a lot of the younger players because of the work he puts in and the dedication he has."

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