It is the news that will strike terror in the hearts of Premiership defenders. Cristiano Ronaldo is enlisting the help of Usain Bolt, the triple Olympic sprint champion, to add searing pace to his dazzling repertoire of step-overs and dummies.

The link-up between the FIFA World Player of the Year and the fastest man on the planet will take place this summer and is, according to Bolt's agent Ricky Simms, far from a commercial stunt.

It is born out of their mutual admiration after Bolt, a passionate football fan away from the track and a huge admirer of Ronaldo, recently sent a message to the Manchester United star asking for a signed shirt.

The Jamaican already has a large collection of original signed shirts which occupies pride of place in a room at his home in Kingston.

Ronaldo, himself a big fan of Bolt, was only too happy to oblige but had a request of his own. In return, he said, he would like some advice from the world record-holder on how to improve his own speed on the football pitch.

Bolt has now agreed to travel to Manchester for a coaching session with the Portuguese player and the pair are in the process of arranging a suitable date.

"It's definitely going to happen," said Simms. "We'll sort something out in this summer when Usain comes to Europe to compete."

Ronaldo is hardly a slouch when it comes to attacking at pace, though the mind boggles at what he could do to defenders with some extra help from the man who redefined the boundaries of sprinting in Beijing last year.

With his trademark bow and arrow mime, Bolt could also give the Portuguese player a lesson in the art of showboating. Or maybe the lesson will be the other way round.