Fed-up Celtic manager Neil Lennon has called for greater online accountability as he railed against "appalling" abuse.
English Premier League referee Mike Dean received a death threat after incorrectly sending off West Ham's Tomas Soucek, while there have been a number of high-profile incidents of racial abuse in recent weeks.
Sadly it's a subject Lennon knows all too well, having been on the end of physical as well as verbal abuse.
Asked about the treatment Dean has received, the Celtic boss hit out at the trolling culture online.
Lennon fumed: "I just think it’s appalling. Absolutely appalling.
"This is again, the days we live in. I’m sick of it and fed up with it.
"Fed up with the racist abuse players are suffering from, or anybody in any walk of life. It’s just disgusting.
“For Mike, I just hope he has his family around him and the referee’s association with full support from managers and players in the game.
"He’s an excellent referee and has been for a long, long time.
"I’ve seen associations talking a lot about these social media platforms and they’re not doing enough to stop this.
"There’s no accountability and people can basically say what they want.
"It’s against the law and they don’t know the damage they’re doing to these individuals, who are just out there trying to entertain and make the game better, and obviously referee the game in the best way possible."
