Senegal head coach Pape Thiaw has urged Africa Cup of Nations hosts Morocco to remember the importance of the tournament’s global image and not to risk continental football unity ahead of Sunday’s final.
The Teranga Lions have endured a controversy-hit build-up to the title decider. The Senegal Football Federation released a statement on Friday night, in which they expressed their ‘serious concerns’ at ‘irregularities’ in the way their delegation had been treated.
They said cited logistics, training facilities, accommodation and ticketing as four areas in which they felt that had been treated unfairly.
Their condemnation of Morocco’s neglect of their duties came after footage had been shared of the Senegal players arriving with the general public at Rabat’s Agdal train station after arriving in the capital following their successful semifinal victory over Egypt, with no security or official welcome having been prepared for the team upon their arrival.
“The stakes in football shouldn’t lead us to do certain things, this Sunday should belong to all of Africa,” Thiaw told ESPN on Saturday.
“This was a competition that no one used to watch, but now it has an elevated status, we shouldn’t destroy that.
“We need to organise the competition well, and what happened is not this. It’s significant that we leave a team like Senegal to arrive with the general public from Tanger.
“Anything could have happened when we’re mixing with people like this, should there be someone who’s not well-intentioned, for example, this should never happen, particularly between two countries who are meant to be brothers.”
Thiaw also argued that poor organisation continues to blight the international perception of the tournament, and will continue to prevent African players from being considered for the top individual prizes in the sport.
“There are players who didn’t win the Ballon d’Or because of the AFCON, because it’s not seen as a major competition,” he continued. “They deserved it, but because the competition is not seen as major, [they didn’t].
“Until today, the organisation has been beautiful, and people are talking about it around the world, so thank you to Morocco for that, they’ve lifted the level of the AFCON and I hope it continues.
“But what happened yesterday should not happen, we’re all witnesses to that. It should never happen, this is the image of Africa we give to the world.
“I don’t speak as Senegal coach, I speak as an African, we want to be able to focus on the final, and we want to bring home the trophy,” he concluded. “At home, there is a proverb: ‘things must be settled in their own time’.”
ESPN were informed on Saturday that Senegal would conduct their training at the Olympique Complexe in Rabat on Saturday, having refused to train at the Mohammed VI Complex in Salé.
They complained that, given the facilities were also doubling up as Morocco’s base camp, it could compromise ‘fair play’ and give the hosts an unfair advantage.
“We have a duty to make sure the Senegal team get all the support and encouragement they require from CAF’s perspective,” Confederation of African Football president Dr Patrice Motsepe told ESPN.
“Focusing on the Senegal issue, we have to deal with that because they say good news does not sell newspapers, but bad news, controversies, failures are exciting.
“I hope that there will be an announcement regarding the Senegal matter.”
Sunday’s final marks Senegal’s third across the last three Nations Cup competitions, while Morocco are participating in their first final since 2004 as the Atlas Lions bid for their first continental crown in 50 years.
