Joe Manganiello Says Sofia Vergara's Claims They Split Over Kids Is Untrue

Joe Manganiello's calling BS on his ex-wife Sofia Vergara's claim they split after 7 years of marriage because he wanted kids and she didn’t ... saying that's simply not why they split.

The actor insists Sofia's take -- which she floated through media interviews post-divorce -- isn't true ... telling Men's Journal they actually had deep talks about starting a family right from the start, but he made it clear to her if she was done having kids, he'd understand.

Joe says they even tried for kids during the first year and a half of their marriage -- and still ... he swore he wouldn’t bail if things didn’t work out -- and he says he stuck to that promise.

JM adds that while he did want kids, their split wasn't at all because of that ... instead, Joe says it just happened because they grew apart -- something he notes is pretty common in marriages.

He wraps up by expressing frustration over how he’s been portrayed after her comments ... saying, "To be painted as if I had some sort of midlife crisis and after nine years, turned to somebody and gave them an ultimatum of, 'Do this potentially unhealthy thing to your body, or else I'm gone'? That's never who I was."

You'll recall ... Sofia -- who has an adult son, Manolo, from a previous relationship -- definitely implied kids were the main factor in their split ... saying in a January interview she thought she was too old to bring a baby into the world, and was past the new-mom window.

Despite the tensions about how things ended ... Joe settled his divorce from Sofia amicably in Feb -- and has since moved on with his new girlfriend Caitlyn O'Connor.

Sofia's also got a new boo -- Justin Saliman  ... and she recently explained his name was perfect for her to repurpose the “J” tattoos she initially got for Joe.