BY KUNLE SOLAJA

One of the globally acclaimed footballers to have come from Nigeria is Austin Okocha who is better known as ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha.

He belongs to the acclaimed Golden Generation of the Super Eagles which dazzled the continent and the world from 1994 to 1996. Okocha was pivotal and a central performer in the squad.
  His illustrious career in the squad with which he made 68 appearance started on this day 31 years ago on 2 May.

He made his first appearance for the Super Eagles in a World Cup qualifying duel with Cote d’Ivoire in Abidjan. Nigeria lost 2-1. Since then, Okocha has had 68 caps.

He remains one of Nigeria’s most iconic footballers as his fame cut across the continent.

At Eintracht Frankfurt he remains one of the most revered players to have worn the German club’s colour as the fans still have fond memories of him, even over two decades since his departure.

His skill with the ball was a beauty to behold. Even other accomplished players confessed they were inspired by Okocha’s skills.

From being a midfielder he rose to become the captain of not just his English Premier League club, Bolton Wanderers, but also of the Super Eagles.

In March 2004, the legendary Brazilian football icon, Pelé named him among top 125 living footballers in the world. Significantly, only five players from Africa made the list.

    When he moved from Fenerbache of Turkey to 1998 French Cup winners, Paris St. Germaine at a record fee of $17 million transfer fee, the amount sent into the archives the two most expensive transfers earlier made in French soccer history, when Olympic Marseille paid $12.6 million each for Italian international Fabrizio Ravenelli and former Metz star, Robert Pires.

  Okocha’s sign-up was regarded as a bid at rebuilding the club to recapture the French League. His languid skill and deceptive pace already made him a favourite among French fans who watched him played four World Cup matches. His creative spark was the most noticeable feature of the erratic Super Eagles at the France ’98 World Cup.

   Okocha’s career  begun at home while playing as a 16 year old for Enugu Rangers. But a chance encounter whilst on holiday in Germany launched his international career. He tried out for fourth division club, Borussia Neunkirchen and they snapped him up.

   In 1992 Okocha began his ascent in the German league, joining first division club Eintracht Frankfurt and signing professional terms. It was at Frankfurt that he first began to excite German crowds with his dazzling dribbling skills and drew the attention of European agents.

  A £1million move to Turkish outfit Fenerbahce was the result in 1996 and Okocha helped his new side to the league title in his first season, but just two seasons later he was on the move again in a staggering $17million switch to Paris St. Germain, making him the most expensive Nigerian footballer ever.

   After seeing out his contract with the French giants, Okocha was available on a free transfer – hence the rumoured £3.3million-a-year wages he was reported to be demanding from Bolton Wanderers. It is testament to Sam Allardyce’s negotiation skills that he was able to convince the midfielder to drop his high demands and join the English Premiership outfit.

  At Bolton, he was like a cult hero. “Jay Jay Okocha – so good they named him twice”, was a common chant by Bolton fans. This was the attitude of  fans towards the gifted Nigerian after the skilful midfielder played the lead role in securing the Trotters Barclaycard Premiership status in his debut season at the club. The Nigerian helped Bolton to one of their most successful seasons ever during the 2003/04 campaign. For 131 years, Bolton Wanderers had wandered in the wilderness.

   The 2003/04 was undoubtedly the best season the club ever had. Okocha was part of that historic moment. In the past, it was common to see Bolton Wanderers slipping into relegation almost every other season. Before Okocha’s arrival at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton Wanderers hardly ever spent three consecutive seasons in the top division.

   After a slow start to his Bolton career Okocha came into his own in the second half of the season, thrilling crowds with his tricks and pleasing Sam Allardyce with his match winning performances. Bolton’s Player of the Season had many memorable moments throughout the 2002/03 campaign, but his most important contribution was the winning goal against relegation rival’s West Ham at the Reebok.

  As if to prove his talent, Okocha was honoured with the BBC’s African Player of the Year award for two consecutive seasons. The player who once featured for Nigeria at Mauritius ’93 African Youth Championship moved to SC Qatar at the close of the 2005/06 season.

  At the close of the 2006 season, he ranked next to Muda Lawal in the number of international appearances for Nigeria.

  The high-point of his career was the scoring of the historical 1,000th goal of the African Cup of Nations.  This he did at Monastir, Tunisia, when he converted a penalty kick to put the score-line at 2-0 in a 4-0 defeat of South Africa.