Collymore hits out on Twitter as vile racist tweets continue

The former Aston Villa star, from Cannock, described tweets aimed at him online as 'disgusting trolling'.

Fellow former footballer Gary Lineker also took to the social networking site yesterday afternoon, describing the abuse received by Collymore as 'an utter disgrace'.

The barrage of racist messages on Saturday is thought to have come in response to Collymore's claim that Liverpool's Luis Suarez dived to win a penalty against Aston Villa.

Steven Gerrard levelled from the spot in the 2-2 draw at Anfield after the Uruguayan striker went down under the challenge of Brad Guzan in the second half as the Reds battled back from two goals down.

The penalty sparked huge debate after the final whistle, with talkSPORT pundit Collymore, aged 42, insisting it was a deliberate dive while others, such as Match of the Day host Gary Lineker, maintained it was the right call by the referee.

Tweets aimed at Collymore include racist messages referring to the colour of his skin and threats of violence. He also said he had reported a further 22 tweets.

There was also an overwhelming amount of support online for the former striker, as footballers, politicians and members of the public alike condemned the abuse.

Among them were Fulham goalkeeper David Stockdale, TV football commentator Dan O'Hagan and Cannock East Labour councillor Janos Toth. Anti-racism group Kick It Out has also reported shocking Twitter taunts to the police.

It is the second time within months Collymore has been subjected to alleged online racism.