Ole Gunnar Solskjaer wants strict social media rules after racial abuse of Manchester United players

Axel Tuanzebe and Anthony Martial targeted with racist abuse after Sheffield United defeat

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has called for social media platforms to be held accountable after Manchester United players Axel Tuanzebe and Anthony Martial were racially abused online earlier this week.

United's shock 2-1 defeat to bottom-of-the-table Sheffield United on Wednesday night led abuse to be aimed at Tuanzebe and Martial in the comments of their post-match Instagram posts.

The Old Trafford club condemned those behind the posts as "mindless idiots" and expressed solidarity with two players affected, and Solskjaer echoed those sentiments while previewing this weekend's trip to Arsenal.

"It's just incredible we have these scenes still, this abuse in 2021," he said. "We've been campaigning for a long time now with the Premier League and I think it's working but there are still some people that haven't got it. 

"They hide behind social medfia, being anonymous and it's unacceptable and it's disgusting.

"They're not Man United fans when this happens. We're all standing behind every single one of our players."

"Axel is fine, I've spoken to him, and of course it's not nice but he's a strong boy, strong character.  

"He's got support from his family and we're a family in the club, his teammates are his family. It's not something you don't expect to see now but you're not surprised when it happens. You have to feel sorry for these individuals."

The incident has raised the prospect of social media companies facing stricter government regulations, with reports on Friday suggesting that the likes of Twitter and Facebook could be made legally responsible for racist abuse posted on their platforms.

Solskjaer welcomed stricter punishments and regulation. "I think the social media platforms need to be looked at," he said. 

"If you can create an anonymous account and abuse people, it's not right. We'll work together with everyone to stop this nonsense."