Inside Wythenshawe FC’s all-star Sunday League project as sprint king Usain Bolt registers to play alongside Premier League icons

Wythenshawe Vets found themselves plastered across newspaper headlines after a merciless 13-0 thrashing of South Liverpool, with Cisse grabbing seven of the goals in front of a delighted home crowd. However, the former Senegal No.9 also went viral for an embarrassing, and extraordinary, 30-second sequence.

Cisse stepped up to take a penalty in the first half, but saw his tame effort palmed away by the South Liverpool goalkeeper, and then proceeded to knock the rebound against the post. There was a slight deflection on the shot that gave Wythenshawe a corner, which Cisse jogged over to take sporting a wry smile on his face.

It turned into a look of horror for Cisse, though, as he somehow managed to kick the ball straight out for a goal kick, with one X user describing it as “the worst corner I’ve ever seen”. Still, he had the last laugh come the final whistle.

Six of his goals came in the second 45 minutes, including a sublime lobbed finish that left the crowd laughing in disbelief. The Telegraph reported that around 800 people turned up to watch the game, which is practically unheard of in Sunday League veterans football, and many of them gathered behind the goal stationed near the club house to get a good look at the stars at the end of the game.

Cisse got the biggest cheer as he left the pitch, and he spoke to a few fans before signing autographs for a group of kids in a classy gesture. Wythenshawe have blown up on social media and gained international recognition, leaving cub chairman Carl Barrett delighted.

“It literally started from a conversation about how we can win these County Cups and suddenly we’ve got all these star players,” he told The Guardian last year. “Positive press is always good but we’ve not had anything like this before. I’ve even had one of my family members in Australia send me a message – that’s how far we’ve reached.

“Wythenshawe is not the most affluent area but hopefully this can contribute to us getting more players, generating more money and the feelgood factor around the place … you can just sense it.”