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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 27 JULY 2014 49 THE fastest man of all time is the leading name at the Games and has f lown half way around the world in order to compete in the 4x100 metres relay. An injury earlier in the season means he is restricting himself to just the relay rather than the in- dividual sprints, causing some to question why he has taken on such a journey for just the one event. But Bolt told a media conference just after f lying into Scotland of a long-held ambition to be a Com- monwealth athlete and that he will be running in the heats of the relay as well in order to get his fit- ness right. "For me it was very important (to be here)," he said. "I expressed it to my coach and I am happy to be here. I have al- ways wanted to compete in the Games. The first one in Australia (in 2006) I strained my hamstring and in 2010 in India it was in Oc- tober, which is a bad time for me. "I got injured earlier in this sea- son and I didn't want to take any- one's spot so I decided 'why not just come in the 4x100m?"' Bolt fielded lots of left-field re- quests during the press confer- ence, ranging from asking if he would wear a kilt to journalists asking him for a selfie. Serious questions were posed, though, such as if he felt that the Games needed him and other big names to commit after the with- drawal of a number of stars. "I don't think anyone has dropped on purpose," he added. "It happens in the Olympics, it happens in the World Championships. It's one of those things." Bolt also buried his head in his hands while laughing when asked if he had any plans to pull out himself. "That's a very weird question," he said. "I am here to run. Why else would I travel all this way to Glasgow? I will be running, defi- nitely." Sport FOOTBALL ATHLETICS BOXING Van Gaal to speak to Jose over Luke Shaw comment Manchester United head coach Louis Van Gaal and defender Luke Shaw Louis van Gaal looks set to speak to Jose Mourinho over his claim that signing Luke Shaw would have "killed" Chelsea SHAW became the fourth-most expensive defender in history this summer when he signed for Man- chester United for an initial fee of £27million. Chelsea, who Shaw supported as a youngster, were interested in the 19-year-old, but Mourinho revealed he pulled out of a bid to sign the player due to his wage de- mands. The Chelsea manager claimed Shaw's reported wages of around £100,000 a week were way too large for a player who only made his Premier League debut in No- vember 2012. "If we pay to a 19-year-old boy what we were being asked for, to sign Luke Shaw, we are dead," Mourinho was quoted as saying in several national newspapers. "We would have killed our sta- bility with financial fair play and killed the stability in our dressing room, because when you pay that much to a 19-year-old kid - a good player, fantastic player - but when you pay that amount of money, the next day, we would have had play- ers knocking on our door. "They would have been saying, 'How is it possible I play 200 games for this club, won this and that, yet a 19-year-old comes here and gets more money than I get?"' Van Gaal refused to get drawn into a public war of words with Mourinho - a former protege of his at Barcelona - but it appears he will discuss the matter privately with the Portuguese. "I don't think I have to discuss things in the media, it's better to discuss it with Jose," he said. Mourinho recently spoke about how he was looking forward to coming up against the man he as- sisted at Barcelona for three years. The Chelsea boss said earlier this week that there is a "fantastic re- lation" between the pair, but that could be tested further this season if the Portuguese criticises Van Gaal's new charges. After signing Diego Costa, Filipe Luis, Cesc Fabregas and Didier Drogba, Mourinho is happy with his squad ahead of the new season. That is not the case for Van Gaal though. The Dutchman is looking to sign at least one centre-back be- fore the transfer window shuts and another midfielder. One of those on Van Gaal's shortlist is Kevin Strootman. Ro- ma coach Rudi Garcia insisted on Friday that the Holland midfielder would not leave the Italian club this summer. But Van Gaal refused to rule out the possibility of signing the 24- year-old once he recovers from the serious knee injury he suffered in March. "We have to wait and see how he comes back from his injury, he has been out for over six months," Van Gaal said when asked about re- ports he was interested in signing his compatriot. Strootman has been left in Bos- ton, where Roma played Liver- pool earlier this week, to recover from his injury, so the Dutchman will not face United in Saturday's friendly in Denver. Van Gaal, who admitted he has been unimpressed with some of United's players in training, was laying down the law to his squad on the eve of the match. The Dutchman gave Chris Small- ing a dressing down during an open training session at the Sports Authority Field and he seemed ex- tremely unimpressed by a select group who continued to miss the target from set-pieces. Off the pitch Van Gaal has been making his presence felt too, de- manding water breaks during Sat- urday's match, which is due to be played in the 33 degree Colorado heat. "It is unbelievable that we play at 2pm," said Van Gaal, who criti- cised FIFA for making Holland play Mexico on a blistering af- ternoon in Fortaleza during the World Cup. "We have to adapt to the situa- tion. "All the players will play 45 min- utes apart from Tom Cleverley and Tyler Blackett. "For these players it is very hard. "I hope to have a pause for a drink also. I shall convince the referee, like it did in Fortaleza. It was the first time they had a drinks break at the World Cup. Mostly they lis- ten." Cleverley lost his place in Eng- land's World Cup squad after a poor season under David Moyes, but hopes to excel this term. The midfielder, who got two hefty pats on the back from Van Gaal as he sat by him during the pre-match press conference, thinks he can benefit from playing in the man- ager's new 3-5-2 formation. "I watched Holland in the World Cup and I think I can be his type of player," Cleverley said. "I have to show that in train- ing and most importantly in the games. I think there is a place for me. I have to prove that." Rafael will miss the friendly, which is part of the International Champions Cup, after he hobbled off in training with what looked like a groin injury. Bolt eager to make Games debut Usain Bolt landed in Glasgow on Saturday and immediately underlined his commitment to the Commonwealth Games Usain Bolt answers questions from the media after arriving in Glasgow Fury pulls out of fight TYSON Fury has withdrawn from this evening's clash with Alexan- der Ustinov after his uncle and first trainer was taken seriously ill, it has been announced. Fury had initially been due to fight Dereck Chisora at Manches- ter's Phones 4 U Arena this week- end but after Chisora was forced to pull out through injury on Monday, 37-year-old Belarusian Ustinov was brought in as a replacement. However, that heav yweight fight will not take place either now after Fury's uncle, Hughie, was taken to hospital. A statement from Queensberry Promotions read: "Tyson Fury has withdrawn from his heav yweight contest tonight against Alexander Ustinov after his uncle and first trainer, Hughie, has been taken se- riously ill into hospital. "Tyson's uncle and trainer Peter took the decision to pull him out of the fight rather than risk his health by sending him into the ring with his mind not focused." Promoter Frank Warren added: "I'm very, very, disappointed for the fans. After Dereck Chisora pulled out because of his hand injury, we worked very hard to secure a world ranked opponent in Ustinov. "It's sad that his uncle Hughie is in a serious condition and our thoughts are with him. "The show will still go ahead and as before it's a great card with Billy Joe Saunders, Liam Smith, Terry Flanagan and Jack Catterall and Nathan Brough all in title action. We will be announcing the re- scheduled date for Chisora v Fury next week." Ustinov, who has won all but one of his 30 fights, was helping Chiso- ra prepare for the British show- down and inf licted the broken hand during sparring that forced Warren to search for a replacement opponent. Replacement: Fury (left) poses alongside his new opponent, Alexander Ustinov