Michael Essien's World Cup conduct under review

Michael Essien could face punishment from the Ghana Football Association after refusing to warm up before his side's game against Portugal.

The 31-year-old was named as a substitute for the Black Stars' final World Cup group clash in Brasilia, but did not join the team in the pre-match session.

"I was notified by my technical team that [Essien] did not warm up though he was supposed to," manager Stephen Appiah is quoted as saying by the Ghana FA's official website.

"That was some minutes before kick off against Portugal. Due to the urgency of the game, we had to carry on and after that I reported his conduct to the GFA in my report for the necessary action to be taken."

The African nation finished bottom of Group G with one point from their three games.