It wasn’t meant to be like this.

Senegal arrived at their fourth World Cup with ambitions of going further than in 2002, when they marked their tournament debut by reaching the quarter-finals.

Yet they are without a point after two games and in grave danger of exiting the competition at the first hurdle. They must beat Iraq on Friday to have any chance of making the knockout stage.

Senegal’s start to the World Cup has been overshadowed by a series of issues inside the camp.

Disputes over bonuses and payments, a late change of chef and complaints over food have dominated the build-up to the opening games.

And a row over manager Pape Thiaw’s contract has also led to concerns that off-pitch matters could affect the team on the field.

So just what is going on?

‘There are some malfunctions’

Players and staff are staying at the four-star Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick, New Jersey, in contrast to the five-star Fairmont Palace in Tangier, the luxury venue used during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

That, however, is not a major issue, especially as the hotel is located close to Senegal’s training base at Rutgers University.

There has been speculation about the quality of the food and claims it has not met the players’ expectations.

The team travelled with their own chef – the one who has been present at previous tournaments and who prepares the menus months in advance of training camps and competitions.

He remained with the squad until the second pre-World Cup friendly – Senegal played warm-up games against the USA in Charlotte and Saudi Arabia in San Antonio – before leaving for personal reasons.

He was replaced by another chef, and the players have no issue with the catering.

Instead, complaints have come from other members of the delegation – not players or coaching staff.

It is those people outside the core team structure – but staying at the hotel – who have sometimes gone out to order food elsewhere, disappointed that Senegalese food was not being served.

Some Senegalese Football Federation (FSF) officials have had family members travel, at their own expense but stay a short distance from the official hotel.

At times they have been in close proximity with the team, which has not been well received by everyone.

The families of the players are staying nearby in another hotel, with accommodation and breakfast paid for by the federation.

Players and staff were also said to be unhappy about unpaid bonuses.

These were finally paid by the government a few days ago.

“It’s true that there’s some malfunctions but, from the players’ side, the staff and the FA, we are focused on the game tomorrow and that’s the most important thing,” Thiaw said on Sunday.

Senegal, 17th in the world rankings, arrived at this tournament as one of Africa’s leading hopes, despite being stripped of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title – which could be regained on appeal.

Instead, they are playing catch-up after losing 3-1 to France and 3-2 to Norway.

“The players don’t need all this commotion,” former Senegal forward El Hadji Diouf told RTS Senegal.

Contract talks ‘took too long’

“If I lose even a second of my belief that I can win the World Cup with Senegal, I will step down,” Thiaw said on the eve of the tournament.

Thiaw, who played for Senegal at the 2002 World Cup, guided the team to that controversial Africa Cup of Nations final in January.

Relations between Thiaw and the federation, however, are not as smooth as appearances might suggest.

When he took charge in 2024, Thiaw accepted the salary that was offered to him, about £210,000 per year.

But after the 2025 Afcon run he acquired a level of power that allowed him to enter contract extension talks from a much stronger position – especially as his previous deal had expired immediately after the tournament.

Talks over his contract extension dragged on.

In Senegal the coach negotiates with the federation, to which he is contractually tied, but both the signing and the payment of the contract must be approved by the state – through the ministries responsible for sport and finance.

After months of delay Thiaw was forced to travel to the US without having signed his new contract.

That happened against a wider political backdrop: Senegal went through a prolonged period of upheaval after the government was dismissed and the prime minister removed from office.

The political situation inevitably had a knock-on effect on other sectors.

When people close to Thiaw increased the pressure through the media, warning that he might refuse to board the plane to the US, Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye stepped in personally.

He contacted Thiaw directly and assured him the matter would be resolved as quickly as possible.

Once the new sports minister, Djireye Clotilde Coly, took office, she travelled to the US to attend the first match against France, meet the squad and reaffirm the assurances that had been given to Thiaw.

The negotiations then moved forward, and an agreement was eventually reached on a contract worth £480,000 per year, plus an £80,000 annual bonus.

On Sunday, Thiaw said: “It’s true it took too long, but it was never a money issue. It was more of a matter of principle and respect, but it’s been resolved.

“As Senegalese people, patriotism is more important than anything else, and the questions around the contract are in the past now. It’s been signed.”

Pape Thiaw took over the national team from Aliou Cisse

‘A couple of creases needed to be ironed out’

Asked on Sunday about issues within the camp, Thiaw said: “It is true there have been a couple of creases that need to be ironed out.”

Asked about his thoughts on what was going on behind the scenes, goalkeeper Mory Diaw, who appeared alongside Thiaw at the news conference, said: “All these are problems that are resolved internally.

“I don’t think you need to be across what we say internally. We have a group of players who are professionals.

“We’re here to represent our country. There’ll be nothing that will make us lose our heads when it comes to our common objective.”

Canal+ journalist Babacar Diarra, who has reported on the team for more than a decade, told BBC Sport: “Senegal hasn’t been in this type of situation for a while.

“You might have had some bonus issues in the past, but it wasn’t out in the press.

“I don’t think this will impact the players or the team. They will stay focused on the tournament.

“I’m not totally surprised by this. Even if they got to the final at Afcon and everything looked fine, it was a bit messy there too.”

BBC Sport has contacted the FSF for a response.

Ticket protest in front of team hotel

In Senegal, there is a tradition that, for every major competition, the state covers the travel expenses, accommodation, and match tickets for the main supporter groups.

However, for this World Cup, Senegal is subject to restrictions that prevent those fans from making the trip.

The local diaspora – Senegalese living in the US and Canada, in particular – expected to benefit from the situation.

However, they were provided with only 400 tickets, and the distribution did not sit well with the majority, who complained about the lack of transparency and the small number of tickets allocated.

Members of Senegalese national associations gathered on Sunday in front of the team hotel to voice their complaints.