JAY JAY Okocha was at the centre of a transfer riddle on Thursday after the Saudi Arabian club, Al-Ittihad, was reported to have signed the Wanderers midfield ace in a £3.5 million deal.

Okocha's Reebok bosses said the claim that he had signed an 18-month contract with the two-time African champions was not worthy of comment.

The mystery has echoes of last summer when the Qatar club, Al-Rayyan, prematurely claimed they had agreed to sign the Nigerian international, who is no longer considered an automatic Premiership choice for Wanderers.

Okocha later confirmed that his representatives had been contacted by the Qataris, but he said he was happy to stay with Wanderers. Last weekend, before he reported for international duty with Nigeria, he gave no indication that he was considering a move before his contract expires in the summer, although he has hinted that he is tempted by lucrative deals on offer in the Middle East.

Reports that he had signed for the Saudis in a 5.1m euro deal - there was no indication that was the proposed transfer fee or the size of his contract - came on Wednesday night from Associated Press, who claimed the information had been supplied by a source at the club.