Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed that he and his family have received online threats.
The Gunners boss is currently overseeing a rebuild at Emirates stadium, with fringe players having been moved on as the Spaniard looks usher in a new era of success in north London.
Recent results have seen the club slump into the bottom half of the table, however, with losses against Wolves and Aston Villa seemingly angering fans to the point of hurling abuse at Arteta and his loved ones.
What has been said?
“I think if we would be reading everything that is written about us, probably we’d have to stay in bed a lot of days,” Arteta told his press conference on Friday.
“I think we are all exposed to that in this industry and that’s why I prefer not to read because it would affect me personally much more the moment somebody wants to touch my family.
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“It happened, the club was aware of it and we tried to do something about it, and that’s it.”
Newcastle boss Steve Bruce also recently revealed that he has received death threats via social media and Arteta is hopeful changes can be made for the better in the long term.
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“It is not going to stop tomorrow, we know that, but medium, long-term, can we do something about it? That’s what I am pushing for,” he said. “I am not the only one who is suffering these kind of things, I think when you are winning everything is beautiful and you are incredible and you are the best coach and when you lose it is the complete opposite.
“That is the reality and it is not pleasant. When it goes personal against me I can take it but when the family is involved then it is a different story.
“I think it is great that people have the ability and so many platforms and ways to communicate and give their opinions. The only thing I am asking is to be respectful. Do it in a respectful way.
“You don’t have to batter anybody or try to hurt anybody, it is just give your opinion with the best intentions. When it is constructive, I think everybody can take criticism.
“It is part of our job to look at it and think and reflect on it, but when people are just with that intention of hurting, that’s when it becomes a little bit silly.”
The bigger picture
Online abuse has become a major talking point of late, with calls having been made for social media companies to better police their platforms in the wake of a slew of racist comments having been sent to black players.
Social media giant Instagram recently released a statement promising “tougher action” for those found guilty of hate speech and abuse, with more steps being taken to ban offending user accounts.
The company, owned by Facebook, also stated that they would be working with law enforcement to help crack down on the issue.