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Jamie Vardy hits out at ‘vile’ Twitter users who posted rape threats about his young daughter

Vardy's fiancé was targeted by trolls after posting a picture of the couple's daughter in a Leicester City shirt

Monday 04 April 2016 12:00 BST

Jamie Vardy (Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

Jamie Vardy has hit out at online trolls who posted “vile” rape and death threats about his young daughter.

Trolls targeted the England player after his fiancé Rebekah Nicholson shared a picture of their one-year-old daughter Sofia wearing a Leicester City shirt at the King Power Stadium after the team beat Southampton 1-0 on Sunday, leaving them seven points clear at the top of the Premier League table.

After the 29-year-old striker re-tweeted the photo, Ms Nicholson received graphic rape and death threats targeting their daughter, some of which were from individuals claiming to be Manchester United supporters. Vardy posted a screen grab of some of the threats which he called “shocking and vile”.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Leicester: Kasper Schmeichel: 6 out of 10

Pulled off a series of important saves in the first half but, surprisingly, wasn’t needed much in the second half.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Danny Simpson: 6 out of 10

Denied Saints their best goal-scoring chance in the first half. Feisty individual who gave as good as he got.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Wes Morgan: 8 out 10

Inspiring performance. Led his team from the back with a series of huge challenges and clearances. Fantastic goal to give Leicester the win.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Robert Huth: 6 out of 10

Solid at the back and, alongside Morgan, dealt with the threat of Pelle and Mane well.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Christian Fuchs: 7 out of 10

Maintained his shape throughout and kept Cedric under wraps for most of the game. Got forward too and grabbed himself an excellent assist.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Riyad Mahrez: 5 out of 10

Uncharacteristically quiet game from him. Saints did well to nullify him and cut off his line of supply from his teammates.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Danny Drinkwater: 7 out of 10

Reliable as ever. Created a number of chances for Vardy and Okazaki with his through balls in behind the Southampton defence.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

N'Golo Kante: 6 out of 10

As usual, a constant menace to the opposition pouncing on loose balls and intercepting passes. Did very well in breaking up Southampton’s play.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Mark Albrighton: 7 out of 10

Dangerous threat for much of the game. Cut inside well and linked up well with the likes of Vardy to create a number of chances for the Foxes.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Jamie Vardy: 7 out of 10

Hardest working man on the pitch. Worked for every single ball and never stopped hassling the Southampton defence. Used his pace well but no goal.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Shinji Okazaki: 6 out of 10

Important pivot for Leicester's game going forward. Impressed with his close, quick link-up play but had a quiet second half.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Southampton: Fraser Forster: 8 out of 10

Pulled off a series of world-class saves to keep Southampton in the game. Proved his international credentials and never gave in.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Cedric Soares: 7 out of 10

Got well forward down the right flank and delivered a series of threatening balls into the Leicester box.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Virgil van Dijk: 6 out of 10

Managed to keep a lid on Vardy for much of the match but a few mistakes here and there throughout the match let him down.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Jose Fonte: 6 out of 10

Solid performance, dealt with Leicester’s set pieces and managed to keep up with Mahrez’s pace.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Ryan Bertrand: 6 out of 10

Did a job at centre-back and even created some chances for his side but overall it was a subdued performance from him.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Victor Wanyama: 5 out of 10

Disappointing performance from him. Nearly gave Leicester a second goal after a careless slip in Southampton’s own half.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Jordy Clasie: 5 out of 10

Should have done better in dealing with Morgan to deny Leicester their one and only goal. Poor game for him.

Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Steven Davis: 6 out of 10

His deliveries were on point for most of the match causing Leicester a few scares within the box.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Sadio Mane: 6 out of 10

Came closest for Southampton but denied by Danny Simpson – could have done better. His pace proved troublesome at times.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Matt Targett: 5 out of 10

Slow start but warmed up towards the end of the first half. An injury to his left ankle cut his game short though.

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Leicester 1 Southampton 0

Graziano Pelle: 6 out of 10

A threat to Huth and Morgan in the air and linked up nicely with Mane to create Southampton’s best chance of the game.

2016 Getty Images

Ms Nicholson also responded to a couple of the trolls by sharing their tweets – which now appear to have either been deleted or the accounts suspended – telling one user: “There are no words for people like you! You need locking up”.

Leicestershire police said in a statement: "Leicestershire Police is investigating a report of malicious communication being sent via social media. A report was made today (Monday 4 April) of an abusive message being received yesterday evening (Sunday 3 April) by a woman on Twitter.

"Enquiries remain ongoing and the force is liaising with Leicester City Football Club."