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For a man who learned the tools of his trade at Real Madrid's famed 'La Fabrica' academy and got promoted to the reserves in 2016, Achraf Hakimi is quickly establishing his reputation as one of the most effective defenders in the world of football. Promoted to the main squad in 2017 as a backup to Dani Carvajal and Nacho, Hakimi made 11 appearances for Los Blancos last season. He made two appearances in the 2017/18 UEFA Champions League as Madrid romped to their third consecutive title. In the process, he became the first Moroccan player to win the coveted Champions League. Despite making just nine La Liga appearances in his breakthrough stint with Madrid last season, Hakimi was hardly short of offers of first-team football this past summer, as the top brass at Santiago Bernabeu wanted the youngster to learn on the job. But, it was his teammate Carvajal's advice that had him convinced about a two-year loan move to Borussia Dortmund. Five games in, Hakimi's decision is fully vindicated. © Twitter/@AchrafHakimi The 19-year-old produced a Carvajal-esque performance for Dortmund during their 7-0 hammering of Nuremberg, capped by his blazing 18-yard debut goal. A trip to Bayer Leverkusen, three days later, provided a much sterner examination of the Moroccan's credentials, but he aced the test with flying colours as BVB secured a 4-2 win. Against Augsburg, Hakimi was seen playing the role of creator for Mario Gotze's goal in their 4-3 win. In the four games he has played for Dortmund, Hakimi boasts of a stunning goal and two crucial assists in the Bundesliga this season. But, the young Morocco international had reserved his best for the Champions League when Atletico Madrid visited Signal Iduna Park for a group-stage clash. Ladies and Gentleman... Axel Witsel is #wonderfull#BVB#UCL#BVBATLpic.twitter.com/ZaWzxrS738 — Borussia Dortmund News (@bvbnewscom) October 24, 2018 Predominantly a right-back, Hakimi, for the second consecutive game for BVB, filled in comfortably on the opposite wing against Atletico. He helped set up fellow summer signing Axel Witsel for their opening goal in 38th minute. His cross in the 73rd minute was slotted home by Raphael Guerreiro to double Dortmund's lead. And then, Jason Sacho's tap-in completed a treble of assist for Hakimi. © AP Though he didn't get the ball on every offensive sequence, the youngster made it a point to get in ball-winning positions for his team immediately. Often acting as a ball-carrier to get BVB high up the pitch quickly, Hakimi caused Atletico headaches all night with his sheer pace. By the time he was done, Hakimi had three assists, a team-high 94 touches and four key passes to his name in what looked like one of the best wing-back masterclasses of recent times. The reasons why @AchrafHakimi is your #BLRookie of the month! ð½ï¸#DontCrackUnderPressurepic.twitter.com/JYWRh6c0uB — Bundesliga English (@Bundesliga_EN) October 16, 2018 For a player who will be waiting till Matchday 5 to make his Dortmund debut, Hakimi has proved to be more than just a cover at right-back for Lukasz Piszczek, who was earlier sidelined by muscle complaints. Even when the Polish international returned to the starting line-up, Hakimi, rather than dropping to the bench, continues to demonstrate his versatility by swapping flanks to take up the left-back berth for BVB. Profiled as a quick, dynamic and powerful full-back, this 19-year-old lad is tactically and technically adept, and capable of playing long accurate passes from the defence. And, the fact that he trained as a winger further allows him to excel in offensive roles. Though it's still a tad too early to tip Hakimi as the best in business, there is no denying that the Moroccan star is one of the best upcoming talents in the ever-competitive world of football.

He is first individual to hold both the 100-metre and 200-metre world records since fully automatic time became mandatory. An eight-time Olympic gold medallist, he is the only sprinter to win 100m and 200m titles at three consecutive Olympics (2008, 2012 and 2016). An eleven-time world champion, he won consecutive World Championships gold medals across 100m, 200, and 4x100m relay from 2009 to 2015. It needless to say that Usain Bolt's dominance and achievements in sprint competition makes him the greatest sprinter of all time. His final outing might have not been as influential as his glorious career at the 2017 World Athletics Championships where the Jamaican sprinter lost his final individual race to his American counterpart Justin Gatlin before finishing third. But, despite that, Bolt has undoubtedly left a mark in the history books. © Reuters And, after calling time on his envious athletics career, Bolt is still not done. In fact, the 31-year-old is taking huge strides in realising his childhood dream of becoming a professional footballer. To set the ball rolling, Bolt has now secured a trial with none other Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund. "In March we're going to do a trial 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. It makes me nervous. I don't get nervous but this is different, this is football now. It'll take time to adjust but once I play a few times I'll get used to it," Bolt told the Sunday Express. While a trial with Dortmund has already got his fans excited, Bolt's heart lies far away with Premier League giants Manchester United. "One of my biggest dreams is to sign for Manchester United. If Dortmund says I'm good enough, I'll crack on and train hard," he claimed. © Reuters He has been in close contact with Red Devils former manager Sir Alex Ferguson about a potential deal with United. "I've spoken to Alex Ferguson and I told him he needs to put in a good word. He told me if I get fit and ready, he will see what he can do," Bolt said. Whether Bolt will be able to repeat his heroics in football or not still remains to be seen, but his advances to become a pro footballer at 31 has undoubtedly got the social media buzzing with many believing that the sprint king will make a fool of himself on the football pitch. he's knackered after one sprint and totally fragile, how is he gonna play football? fucking clickbait — RightJudgeIam (@RightJudgeIam) January 7, 2018 Have they saw that footage of him kicking a football?! He is utter dogshite ðð — Jay Dee (@JayMTDee) January 7, 2018 He's no that good! ð¤£ð¤£ — gary walls (@gary_walls) January 7, 2018 This is got forest gump written all over it run bolt run ððð — Harry (@hazzajock) January 7, 2018 Stay in your lane — Josh (@TechnicalDickov) January 7, 2018 This is a joke right? — modbet.co.uk (@modbet_UK) January 7, 2018 Why would they sign a 31 year old ð — Will (@YtfcButtle) January 7, 2018 Yo if usain bolt actually signs for Dortmund ðð that for me is the death of football — big d (@dazfitz89) January 7, 2018

Like the weather, or even more so, sports create the pillars for everyday conversations. Even between different cultures, sports has the capability of bringing people together. Whether it's cricket or football, a sporting event brings the world to a standstill as people shed their nationalities to forge club loyalties. But, while a sporting event has the ability to attract the masses, it, inadvertently, becomes a potential target for terror groups to disrupt peace and instil fear in the people. The presence of a large, condensed crowd of people in a restricted area makes it a haven for militant outfits to grab the spotlight. Whether it's the Munich Olympics massacre in 1972 or the recent attack on Borussia Dortmund's team bus, history has taught us how prone sports is to terrorism. And, while we all wonder if sports will ever get free from the clutches of such negative elements in the society, the German football club seems to leading the way for resistance. © Reuters The world of sports came to a standstill when Dortmund's team bus was attacked with three explosions that caused their defender Marc Bartra to undergo surgery at the hospital and a postponement of their Champions League quarterfinal tie against Monaco by a day to Wednesday. With fool-proof security arrangements in place for the Wednesday's quarterfinal, Dortmund, despite being shell-shocked by the attack, didn't forget about the Monaco fans stranded in the city for a day due to the postponement of the match. Dear supporters of @AS_Monaco_EN! If you need accommodation in Dortmund, please check #bedforawayfans. #bvbasm — Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) April 11, 2017 Dortmund took to Twitter to spread the message among their fans. "Dear supporters of @As_Monaco_EN! If you need accomodation in Dortmund, please check #bedforawayfans. #bvbasm," the German club tweeted. © Twitter Their tweet got the hastags #bedforawayfans and #tableforawayfans to trend, prompting the Dortmund supporters to take up the message. And soon, the fans started sharing pictures of the Monaco fans putting up at their homes and sharing dinner. © Twitter ? Thanks to all the fans in and around Dortmund for making #bedforawayfans possible last night! #bvbasm https://t.co/48znPI9N80 — Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) April 12, 2017 At a time when terror outfits are looking to capitalise on every opportunity to divide and isolate people, the Dortmund club and their fans highlighted the true spirit of sports - togetherness - with their massive goodwill gesture. © Twitter Football surely took a hit at the home of the world champions, but Dortmund's resilience shows that it would probably take much more to dent the heart of football - the supporters.