The Super Eagles yesterday relocated from their CAF base in Fez to Rabat, where they held a closed-door training session at the Mohammed VI Football Complex.
The team had been camped in Fez after moving from Marrakech, following their 2-0 quarter-final victory over Algeria.
Nigeria adopted Fez as its base camp for the tournament, playing their first four matches there — group games against Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda, as well as the Round of 16 encounter against Mozambique.
The Super Eagles are scheduled to hold their final and official training session ahead of the semi-final at the same venue by 6:15 p.m. this evening.
Meanwhile, CAF has appointed Mauritanian referee Dahane Beida to officiate Wednesday night’s Africa Cup of Nations semi-final between the Super Eagles and hosts Morocco.
Beida came under criticism during Morocco’s 2-0 victory over Cameroon in the quarter-finals, where he was accused of favouring the hosts with several contentious decisions.
One of the major incidents occurred in the 68th minute when Cameroon were denied a penalty after Bryan Mbeumo was fouled inside the box.
The referee’s appointment followed the rejection of Egyptian official Amin Omar, who was initially slated to handle the match but was turned down by the Morocco Football Federation.
Beida has also faced criticism in the past for his handling of the CAF Confederation Cup final, where Moroccan club RS Berkane defeated Simba of Tanzania amid allegations of biased officiating.
Interestingly, the Mauritanian was also in charge of the 2023 AFCON final in Abidjan, where the Super Eagles lost 2-1 to hosts Côte d’Ivoire.
His appointment has raised concerns in some quarters about potential bias in a fixture where Morocco, as tournament hosts, already enjoy home advantage.
