We're not women: Juventus teammate on Ronaldo Red Card for pulling hair

Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus teammate, Emre Can, has landed himself into hot water after being accused of making sexist remarks when speaking out about the perceived injustice toward his teammate for getting sent off in the Champions League tie against Valencia.

The Portuguese was sent off after he allegedly pulled at the hair of an opposition defender after the defender fell to the ground in an attempt to con the referee into giving Ronaldo a red card, who duly obliged.

As reported by MailOnline's Matt Porter, the Germany international and Cristiano Ronaldo teammate Emre Can, spoke to DAZN and said he disagreed with the decision to send him off.

He then said the players on the pitch "are not women":

"That's supposed to be a red? I just heard he said it was because of hair pulling. We're not women, we're playing football. If you're going to give a red for that, you can give a red for anything. It was 100 per cent not a red card."

"We're not women, we're playing football," Can said after Wednesday's game, leading to accusations of sexism and calls for a ban on social media.

But the midfielder, in an attempt to prevent further backlash, later said:

"Everyone who knows me knows about my respect for women."

In a statement posted on social media on Thursday, the Germany midfielder said he "wanted to clear the air" after his comments had "caused some commotion".

"The comments made were never focused on nor meant to degrade women, women's football or equality in any form," added the 24-year-old, who joined Juventus from Liverpool in the summer.

"My intention was to stick up for a team-mate regarding a wrong decision which could have affected our game. I sincerely apologise if any of the comments I made caused any harm."