Saturday, August 23, 2008

THE WORLD'S FASTEST MAN IS COMING.. TO STOKE!

STOKE v ASTON VILLA PREMIER LEAGUE TODAY, 3PM Potters star Fuller has invited best pal Bolt to watch him play
Sprint King Usain Bolt is dashing to Stoke to cheer them on in their battle to beat the drop.
The world's fastest man has won the Olympic 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay in China.
But Bolt will soon be racing to lift the spirits of a Potters side predicted to be left in the blocks, after receiving an invite from his best pal - Stoke striker Ricardo Fuller.
Fuller reckons that fellow Jamaican Bolt will fly in to see him play once he recovers from his Beijing exertions.
And he believes a visit from the runner he calls "Superman" could inspire a Stoke team that is likely to be outpaced by their Premier League rivals.
Fuller said: "He is a good friend of mine. I call him my club partner. We go on nights out together.
"I have known him since he was in high school doing championships in Jamaica.
"But the last time I saw him was at a cricket match when the West Indies played against Australia in the summer.
"So I certainly will invite him over for a game this season, but I get a feeling he may be busy for a little while."
Fuller is no slouch himself and was coached by the same man who discovered Bolt's talent before giving up on a career in athletics for football. He added: "I used to run 100m in my primary school. That is how I got into my high school because I got a scholarship through track and field.
"When I was there, Usain's coach Glen Mills was my coach.
"But when he used to call out the names of the people to go and do track and field, I used to hide because I always wanted to do football.
"I never wanted to do track and field and after a couple of months he started to forget about me. But now if I had a choice between finishing top scorer in the Premier League or winning the Olympics, I would take the gold. There is nothing greater than that at the moment - unless I scored the winner in the Champions League final."
While Stoke could do with Bolt's pace to deal with Gabriel Agbonlahor in today's clash with Aston Villa, Fuller reckons his pal is more interested in nightclubs than football. He said: "I don't know if he can play football - but he could go dancing in the clubs."
Stoke boss Tony Pulis goes up against a Villa side that ripped Manchester City apart 4-2 last Sunday, in a game he watched from the stands.
And Pulis admitted: "I have total respect for Aston Villa and what Martin O'Neill has done at the club.
"I believe Martin and Mark Hughes should have been the candidates for the England job.
"You only have to see the marvellous job Martin has done at Villa to see what a good manager he is."
O'Neill will again select midfield maestro Gareth Barry, 27, at Stoke this afternoon.
But O'Neill has not taken kindly to Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitting this week he is considering signing £18million-rated Barry.
"I have heard absolutely nothing personally from Arsene Wenger," revealed O'Neill.
"It is strange. I just thought the comments were really, really strange - bizarre.
"Wenger doesn't usually make comments like that, it must have been a bit of a slip."
And O'Neill is sick of interest in Barry after fending off four bids from Liverpool this summer for Villa's prized asset.
He added: "He is going to play for us at Stoke and we would love him to stay.
"In terms of his fitness it has been a bit stop-start for him because he hasn't had a proper pre-season."
Usain is a good friend of mine. I call him my club partner. We go on nights out together when we meet up RICARDO FULLER