Brasilia, New York Times — The fact that 11 players from Ghana stepped onto the field to face Portugal at the appointed time was a victory in itself. After a week of infighting and boycott threats by its players, the Ghana Football Association on Thursday suspended two of its stars heading into the match, raising doubts about whether the team was equipped to play amid the turmoil.

While the G.F.A. decision was a victory for James Kwesi Appiah, the besieged coach who was the target of abuse by the winger Kevin-Prince Boateng in training, Ghana lost, 2-1, and its 2014 World Cup ended in shambles.

Portugal did not fare better despite the victory. It was knocked out because the United States had a better goal differential.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the superstar midfielder, scored the decisive goal in the 80th minute. When asked to answer a question in English on his way to the team bus, Ronaldo summed up the day: “It is not my story today.”

That Portugal’s first goal was scored off the knee of Ghana defender John Boye only underscored Ghana’s self-destruction.

On Tuesday, the players refused to train and threatened to boycott the game, until Ghana, with the intervention of its president, agreed to send a plane laden with more than $3 million in cash to Brazil to pay the players. On Wednesday night, Boye was photographed in Ghana’s hotel kissing a stack of cash.

“What the players requested was what was paid to them,” Appiah said.

And all seemed well until Thursday morning, when the G.F.A. announced that Boateng, whose brother Jérôme plays for Germany, was sent home for what the association described as a verbal attack on Appiah. Sulley Muntari was also suspended for collecting two yellow cards.

Regarding Muntari, the association said, “The decision was taken in the wake of his unprovoked physical attack on an executive committee member and a management member of the Black Stars, Mr. Moses Armah, on Tuesday.”

Appiah explained that he and Boateng had words in training, and he instructed the player to sit down.

“If you want to build a team and install discipline,” Appiah said, “it’s always important to set things right so it doesn’t happen to the team in the future.”

He also said that if the players showed contrition and behaved well and also performed well, they would be invited back.

“I don’t think the decision had an impact,” Appiah said of the team’s performance. “I thought the boys played well and had chances. We just didn’t take them.”

In a final ugly turn after the game, the Ghanaian players emerged from the locker room en masse and refused to speak to reporters. When a Ghanaian reporter booed the group, forward Asamoah Gyan acted as if he wanted to fight the man and had to be restrained by teammates.

With both teams needing a win to advance, they each attacked and created numerous scoring chances, several by Ronaldo.

Portugal scored in the 31st minute, but Ghana evened the score, creating nervous tension for United States fans in Recife. Still, in the 80th minute, clumsy defending by the Ghanaians, particularly by goalkeeper Fatau Dauda, led to the winner.

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With the ball high off the head of a Ghana defender, Dauda could have knocked it back over the crossbar or even caught it. Instead he slapped it to the worst possible place, Ronaldo’s feet, and Ronaldo did not waste the opportunity.

When the match ended, players from both teams lowered their heads and walked about the field shaking hands with one another. Like Boateng and Muntari, they would go home unhappy to countries that were described as somber and silent.

“Ghanaians love football to bits,” Appiah said. “I compare it to the Brazilians because football is like that in Ghana. So they would have loved to see their country going to the next stage. All I can say is, it’s unfortunate.”

Appiah said all the disruptions had prevented him from sleeping the past few nights, but after getting the support of his association, perhaps he can find some solace.

“As to the lessons that have been learned, I had meetings with the management, and I am 100 percent sure that once I am in charge, such a thing will never happen again,” he said.

At least someone won something here.