Okocha (left) - wants to finish on a high (Allsport)

By Alistair Grant, PA Sport

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Julius Aghahowa's back-flip goal celebration has been the biggest impact homeward-bound Nigeria have had on the World Cup, but on Wednesday England must beware another agile African, who is planning to bow out of international football with a bang.

Sven-Goran Eriksson's men only need a point from their crunch Group F showdown in Osaka to clinch a second-round tie with Denmark or Senegal.

But one man, Nigeria captain Jay Jay Okocha, is on a mission to halt the England bandwagon in his last game for his country.

The Paris St Germain midfielder, one of the most talented players ever to come out of Africa, has announced his international retirement to allow the next generation of Nigerian footballers the opportunity to shine for their nation.

Okocha, only 28, insists he had made his shock decision before the defeats against Argentina (1-0) and Sweden (2-1), which ensured Festus Onigbinde's squad would be boarding the first plane home.

"I have always thought of quitting the national team after the World Cup," Okocha said. "This should be my last World Cup appearance - there's no doubt about that.

"I have to give the opportunity to the younger ones, who are equally promising. It's painful that it ended this way - but what can one do?

"This is a game of football and you can never know what will happen. Now it has gone this way. Honestly, nothing would have stopped me from quitting after the championship."

However, despite Okocha's downbeat mood, Eriksson will discount the Nigerian favourite at his peril.

"We are still going to play to win," Okocha told Lagos paper This Day.

"We're going to play our normal game, while England will be under pressure. At least for the sake of our country we're going to play to win."

Despite Aghahowa's somersaults after scoring against Sweden, Okocha is still Nigeria's highest-profile player.

He possesses the talent to decide the outcome of a game in an instant and after tomorrow, Nigeria will have no choice but to face up to the unenviable task of finding a new midfield playmaker.

Put simply, Okocha makes Nigeria tick.

The Africans' line-up is packed with talent, but his close control, smart passing and enthusiastic forward breaks stand out above his team-mates.

Okocha is out of contract at PSG at the end of this month and Bolton recently displayed an interest in adding him to their growing stable of foreign stars.

He made his debut for Nigeria against Sudan in 1993 and was a member of the World Cup squads that spectacularly reached the second round of USA 94 and France 98.

He also earned a winner's medal at the 1994 African Nations Cup in Tunisia and at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

And on Wednesday, England's midfield quartet David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Trevor Sinclair must produce performances to rival their towering displays against Argentina to ensure the threat posed by the retiring Okocha is successfully combated.