Cristiano Ronaldo had an opportunity to defend himself after today's match against Malaga and maintained that he did not mean to cause harm to Patrick Mtiliga after being sent off for an elbow to the face.

Ronaldo was brilliant in the match (scoring twice) and was disappointed to have ended the game in such fashion. Speaking to reporters, he stated, "It's a shame that the referee has sent me off. That's not a red here or anywhere in the world."

"I intend only to play. In England I learned a lot about this because it used to bother me, but now I get a little angry when players do things like that [pulling him back]. I went to apologise to Mtiliga and he said I did not need to because my intention was not to attack him.

"We may see blood but anyone who knows football understands that this is not red. It was the result of bad luck because the guy measures only 1 metre 70, had he been taller it would have it him in the chest.

"I'm very sad about what happened because I'm not a bad person. Anyone who plays football knows that my intention was not to hurt him but to defend myself from his grab. I did not want to hurt him."