JAY-JAY Okocha admits he did not know what he was stepping into when he swapped Paris St Germain for Bolton Wanderers 15 years ago.

The Nigerian wizard shocked the footballing world in 2002 by moving from the French giants – where he had signed previously for £10million – on a free transfer to our own unheralded corner of Lancashire.

Okocha admitted his desire to play in the Premier League was his primary reason for coming to Bolton, where he went on to become a club captain, featuring in 138 games in all competitions and scoring 16 goals.

A fans’ poll in 2005 voted him the second greatest player ever to feature for Wanderers, behind Nat Lofthouse and ahead of John McGinlay, Gudni Bergsson and Frank Worthington.

But the man himself conceded in an interview with Goal.com he was unprepared for the fight against relegation in his first season at the Reebok, which ended with his famous touchline dance-off after the Middlesbrough game.

“My worst moment I would say was my first season because I did not realise how tough the Premier League is and I did not realise early enough that I signed for a struggling team,” he said. “But then at the end of the day I will say my greatest moment in England was the day that we survived relegation, we survived after the last game of the season.”

Okocha says he has no regrets from his time in England, which ended after a short stint at Hull City in 2007/08.

As captain he had helped Wanderers qualify for their first-ever European campaign, playing alongside some other world renowned names.

“I would have been regretting my time England if I had not left my legacy,” he said.

“The most important thing for me is the opportunity that you have. I think I maximised my opportunity at Bolton, changing the mindset of the people from when I arrived until the time I left.

“Bolton was one of the relegation candidates when I got there but we took the club to another level and even had the opportunity to play for the first time in the Europa League.

“We had some great players during my time. Youri Djorkaeff, Ivan Campo, El Hadji Diouf – love him or hate him, he was instrumental to what we achieved. Fernando Hierro, too, and Hidetoshi Nakata from Japan.

“We had all nationalities in one team and it was great to have these players in the team.

“I welcomed the challenge we faced with both hands and I enjoyed every moment of it.

“So, when I look back at what I achieved at Bolton, it makes me very happy.”