Ghana captain Asamoah Gyan apologised on Sunday for the Black Stars' World Cup collapse which saw them finish bottom of their group amid money disputes in the squad.
"We went there to make sure we make the nation proud, and then things didn't happen," Gyan said before a handful of supporters at the airport in the capital Accra. "What I have to say is sorry to all the fans who were very disappointed in us."
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Coach Kwesi Appiah expressed similar sentiments.
"It's really unfortunate, I know Ghanaians love football and would have loved to get much, much further," Appiah said. "I'm very sorry I could not achieve what Ghanaians expected the team to."
Ghana lost its opening Group G match to the United States 2-1 and tied Germany 2-2 in its second match.
Controversy off-the-pitch then further undermined the World Cup effort.
Players demanded that more than $3 million (Dh11m) in bonuses be flown to them in Brazil, an embarrassingly public expenditure for Ghana's cash-strapped government.
Before the team's final match against Portugal, the Ghana Football Association kicked key players midfielder Sulley Muntari and striker Kevin-Prince Boateng out of the squad.
The GFA alleged Muntari assaulted a staff member and Boateng insulted Appiah.
Ghana went on to lose to Portugal 2-1.
The team's preparations were also tainted by allegations by Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper that a Ghana Football Association official had agreed for the national team to play in a game organized by match-fixers.
Ghana went on to lose to Portugal 2-1.
Gyan's goal against Portugal in the final game made him the top-scoring African footballer in World Cup history, which the capable striker called "a great achievement."
When asked if his apology extended to the drama in the team's camp, Al Ain striker Gyan said it covered "everything."
"At the end of the day, we didn't qualify, so whatever happens on and off the field, we are the people to be blamed," he said.
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