Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, who was named one of the world's 100 most influential people by Time magazine, has said women must be treated with more respect.
Salah, who is a practising Muslim, said he has changed the way he thinks about women and called on men to treat gender relations differently "in my culture and in the Middle East."
The Egypt international was named on the new Time list alongside world leaders, global tycoons and celebrities including U.S. president Donald Trump and Pakistan prime minister and former cricketer Imran Khan.
"We need to change the way we treat the woman in our culture," Salah said.
"I support the woman more than I did before, because I feel like she deserves more than what they give her now, at the moment. That has to be; it's not optional."
👩🏼👩🏽 pic.twitter.com/K3GCvyIt1Q
— Mohamed Salah (@MoSalah) April 18, 2019
Salah made Time's list under the category of "Titans" and was one of six prominently featured cover stars in the index.
He was singled out for his importance to Egyptians after guiding his country to the World Cup finals for the first time since 1990.
"People always have big, big expectations from you," Salah said. "You see the kids, they're wearing your shirt and they say they wish they could be like you one day.
"So they put you under pressure a bit, but that is something that makes you proud about what you have reached until now.
"To be the first Egyptian in [this] situation and no one has done this before ... it's something different."
Salah has scored 19 goals in the Premier League this season and has helped propel Liverpool into a title race with champions Manchester City.
Among the other sports stars on the list are U.S. women's soccer player Alex Morgan, Masters champion Tiger Woods and NBA legend LeBron James.