Referee Mark Halsey was last night considering calling in the police over sick Twitter taunts following his handling of the explosive clash between Liverpool and Manchester United.
A number of tweets referred to Halsey's well-known battle against cancer and sickeningly referred to his wife, Michelle, who has also been fighting the disease.
Two of the most offensive comments came from a John Wareing who said "I hope Mark Halsey gets cancer again and dies" (@johnwareing1) and a John Hughes who tweeted "Mark Halsey should've died of cancer" (@lfcjohn259).
Halsey (right) and his family were so upset by the tweets that the referees' governing body, Professional Game Match Officials Ltd, will offer Halsey the chance to consult a psychologist and replace him for his Capital One Cup tie tomorrow between Southampton and Sheffield Wednesday. The Hughes tweet was later removed and the word "Apologies" posted.
Within minutes of the game finishing in a 2-1 defeat for Liverpool, messages were being posted on social media websites following a number of controversial refereeing decisions including a first-half red card for Liverpool's Jonjo Shelvey for a rash tackle on United defender Jonny Evans.