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| Mark Halsey sent off Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey |
Referee Mark Halsey has confirmed he has complained to Greater Manchester Police about abuse he received on Twitter following Manchester United's win over Liverpool on Sunday [Sept. 23].
Halsey was the victim of two abusive tweets, both of which referred to his throat cancer diagnosis in 2009.
The 51-year-old official sent off Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey and then awarded Manchester United a controversial penalty in the Premier League game at Anfield, with Robin van Persie converting the spot-kick for a 2-1 win.
Tweets from accounts named @johnwareing1 and @lfcjohn259 made reference to Halsey dying of cancer. Both accounts were subsequently removed.
"I can confirm that my family have made a complaint to the police".
"I will be speaking to the police on Wednesday after I have returned from refereeing Southampton v Sheffield Wednesday."
Halsey returned to refereeing in March 2010, and is due to officiate the Capital One Cup third-round meeting between Southampton and Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday [Sept. 25] night.
Mark and his family are receiving the support of his employer, PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited.
PGMOL, which provides referees to the Premier League, also issued a statement deploring the actions of the small minority of abusive Twitter users. "PGMOL abhors any abuse of match officials whether that is in stadia or outside of it", it said.
"Our main concern is towards Mark and his family, and as with all match officials, there is a backroom team who are there for them.
Halsey showed a red card to Shelvey for a challenge on Jonny Evans but both managers had different views on the decision.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson thought "it was a clear red card" while Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers said: "Jonjo Shelvey, if he gets sent off, then Jonny Evans has to go as well. I think both players' feet are off the floor".
