SHAMED Sherif Lanre was axed from Love Island for a crude jibe at fellow contestant Molly-Mae Hague.

It came after he accidentally kicked her in the crotch during a play fight and called it a “c*** punt”.

14 Sherif admits his actions were wrong and that he regrets the vile language he used, but he believes ITV is guilty of 'unconscious racism' for kicking him out Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun

14 Molly-Mae reportedly received an accidental kick to the groin Credit: Joey Wright / Lipstick Syndication

14 He has revealed that his 'toes crashed into' Molly-Mae's groin during a play fight in the bathroom — after which he cracked his vile 'c***t punt' joke Credit: WENN

Last night Sherif, 20, said: “I’ve been stupid and let myself down.”

He told The Sun on Sunday of his regret after the vile ‘joke’ led to his exit from the show on Monday.

But the 20-year-old chef insisted that he was not being malicious.

ITV bosses ditched Sherif for crudely joking “That’s a c*** punt” after he accidentally kicked fellow contestant Molly-Mae Hague in the crotch during a play fight.

14 Sherif has spoken to The Sun On Sunday following feverish speculation about the real reason he was forced out of the villa Credit: Rex Features

The term is highly offensive slang about an attack on a woman.

Sherif said: “I have never used the word before and I realise how insulting it is to women.

“As someone raised by a strong and loving mother, I want to say that I would never intentionally offend women.

“I was completely wrong and I apologise.”

BREAKING HIS SILENCE TO END RUMOURS

But he added: “I was the only black man in the villa and I was kicked out after ten days.

“In my opinion, what happened was unconscious racism.

“There was, I felt, sexism. I feel I wouldn’t have been given that red card if I was a white woman.”

Sherif was forced to leave the Love Island villa on Monday but no reason was given by the ITV2 show’s chiefs.

ITV issued a statement on behalf of Sherif saying: “In a case of poor judgment, I broke the villa rules and as a result agreed with the producers that it was best for me to leave the villa.

“I regret that I didn’t conduct myself in the right way.”

14 Sherif’s anger is fuelled by the feeling that he was on the verge of finding real love with Kim Kardashian lookalike Anna Vakili, 28, before he was kicked out Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun

14 Sherif eventually coupled with Anna after an awkward start to the show left him in a vulnerable position Credit: ITV

14 Sherif has spoken exclusively to the Sun On Sunday about what really went on in the villa Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun

14 Sherif believes that being the only black man in the villa may not have helped him Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun

But it sparked furious speculation about his departure — including false claims of cocaine use, rumours he was caught on camera pleasuring himself in the shower and allegations that he had broken Anton Danyluk’s nose in a bust-up.

Sherif revealed: “I did kick Molly-Mae in the groin area but it was an accident and she 100 per cent was not injured afterwards.

“She flinched and bent over to protect herself. Then she stood up and seemed fine and we started laughing about it.

“I turned to Tommy Fury and said, ‘That was a c*** punt.’

“I’ve never used the word before and don’t know where it came from. I think I’ve heard other people saying it and it just popped out.

“I know I have been stupid and let myself down but I was not being malicious.

“This has been blown out of all proportion and I have been made to look like a terrible person when I am not.”

14 The ex-Islander pictured returning to his home in London after being evicted Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun

14 Sherif had attempted to keep a low profile since he was evicted Credit: Splash News

Sherif recalled that the play fighting incident happened in the early hours of Monday as he, Tommy and Molly-Mae, 19, were preparing to go to bed.

He said: “Molly-Mae was in the unisex bathroom about to brush her teeth and Tommy and I went in to do the same.

'MY TOES CRASHED INTO HER GROIN'

“I gave her a jokey look and she turned round and said something like, ‘Do you want some?’ She was just messing around.

“We started acting out these karate moves. She punched me on the arm in a jokey way.

“I did not hit her back but at some point I kicked upwards and caught her by accident.

“I didn’t mean to. I realised too late that she had moved forwards.

“My toes crashed into her groin and I guess the impact of us moving in the same direction made it quite hard, but it wasn’t that hard.

“Molly-Mae crouched over in a defensive position and I was ­worried I had hurt her.

14 Sherif says he accidentally booted 19-year-old influencer Molly-Mae Hague in the groin

14 Sherif shares a joke with Tommy Fury Credit: Rex Features

“I reached out my arm to check she was OK but she stood up and made a face that said, ‘You’re being cheeky.’ I turned to Tommy and said, ‘That’s a c*** punt.’

“We were all laughing and kept talking afterwards about different things, I can’t remember what.

“Molly-Mae must have heard it but didn’t seem offended so there was no need to apologise. Tommy and I went downstairs to go to bed after brushing our teeth. Molly-Mae came down two minutes later.

“We all said ‘good night’ and went to sleep. There’s no way she made a complaint.”

'I WAS TREATED LIKE A CRIMINAL'

ITV producers in Majorca pored over the taped footage and hauled Sherif out of bed at around lunchtime. He said: “I think they got me up two hours earlier than everyone else. I think it was about 12.30pm.

“There were two directors and they asked me to explain myself. I told them we were just messing around but they said I had broken the code of conduct and it had been decided by someone high up that I had to leave. I was shown a straight red card.

“My mum asked later exactly what part of the code I had breached and they said it related to ‘any other behaviour deemed inappropriate by producers’.

“I was sent home without the chance to pack my bags or say goodbye to the other contestants. I was treated like a criminal over a simple mistake.”

Sherif's villa verdicts Anton - “Upbeat and doesn’t like carbs, he ate a lot of veg in the villa.” Joe - “Energetic and cheeky.” Lucie - “Bubbly and free spirited.” Amy - “Someone who shows a lot of motherly love. She was the group’s mother figure.” Curtis - “Is a father figure and very rational. The mediator of the group.” Yewande - “She was an older sister figure. Both youthful and mature in spirit at the same time.” Anna - “A sweet and caring individual.” Amber - “Realistic, very straight talking and funny.” Michael - “A teacher figure and Nutella and peanut butter fiend.” Danny - “Smart and composed.” Callum - “Kind hearted and cool headed.” Molly-Mae - “Hilarious and chatty.” Tommy - “Banterous and light hearted. He loved cheese on toast and mayonnaise.”

Sherif is now back at mum Diana’s home in South London where he has been chaperoned by ITV security guards and held meetings with psychologists.

He claims producers badgered him into signing a statement apologising and warned him not to talk about it once he left the villa.

He said: “The producers told me they would draft the statement for me. They told me it would damage my reputation if I stated the real reason I was being kicked out so they were leaving that bit out.

14 The 20-year-old says his mental health has been affected by the stress of being kicked off the show Credit: Rex Features

14 While he was kicked out for a 'stupid mistake', Sherif says others got away with worse Credit: ITV

“The statement was written in another room then printed out for me to read.

“I asked for a few small changes where I didn’t think the language sounded like me, and once they had made those, I agreed they could send it out.”

The news broke on Tuesday when Love Island put out a statement saying: “After breaking the villa rules, Sherif had conversations with the producers and it was mutually agreed that he would leave the Love Island villa.”

But the lack of a reason for his exit led to him being trolled on social media

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He said: “I felt like I signed the statement too quickly and I wish I had cleared this up straight away. I never masturbated in the villa and I’ve never taken cocaine so to say I was kicked out over that is ridiculous. And I didn’t have a fight with Anton, I got along with him.”

Sherif’s anger at his departure was fuelled by the feeling he was on the verge of finding real love with Kim Kardashian lookalike Anna Vakili, 28.

He said: “I couldn’t believe it when I saw her for the first time because I had been following her on Instagram for about a year and I had always fancied her.

“I was like, ‘I know you.’ Once we got talking she surprised me, but in a positive way.

“She was very down-to-earth and we had a real connection.

“Our relationship was just reaching a key moment when I was kicked out. I hope to see Anna again but for now they’ve ruined that romance for me — and that’s hard to take.”

Sherif Lanre teaches Tommy Fury how to make tea for Molly-Mae Hague on Love Island