The Flying Eagles will camp in Morocco instead of Spain ahead of ahead of next month’s Africa U-20 Cup of Nations on January 7.
A training camp for the country’s youth team has become paramount because they need to acclimatise to the wintry weather conditions in Egypt.
The 2023 U-20 AFCON will be played in Egypt between February 19 and March 11 with the top four teams qualifying for the U-20 World Cup in Indonesia in May.
“The team will train in Morocco, which has similar weather with Egypt, which at the moment is very cold and the team need to get used to this in time for the tournament,” a team official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
“The logistical challenges like getting visas into Spain for a large contingent and in record time also worked against the Flying Eagles preparing there.
“Egypt was also considered a suitable training site for the Flying Eagles, but that was dropped after the team were drawn in the first round with the host nation.”
The Flying Eagles are expected to depart for Morocco at the end of the month after coach Ladan Bosso would have submitted his final 21-man squad to the Confederation of African Football latest January 20 for the tournament.
Nigeria are drawn with hosts Egypt, Senegal and Mozambique in the first round of the continental tourney.