Nigeria’s U23 team were ultimately undone by the harsh weather on Thursday, and it played a part in the 1-0 defeat to Sudan in their AFCON qualifying match, says Merreikh Al-Fasher Head Coach Mohamed Azeez.

A solitary first half strike punished Nigeria’s sloppiness in front of goal against the more determined Sudanese side, but mostly it was the 38 degrees Celsius, 10% precipitation and 38% humidity that hurt the 2015 Champions.

In a telephone interview from Sudan, on Brila FM’s Sports Machine, Azeez confirmed the Dream Team struggled to cope with the weather, having only arrived 24 hours before the game.

‘Indeed I will say the weather affected them (Nigeria); the Sudan team have been together for longer and have a better understanding of what it takes to play under the conditions from yesterday.

‘It was a narrow scoreline, couldn’t have been more and that’s credit to how the Nigerian Coach organized his team,’ the Azeez said.