Leeds United condemn 'unacceptable' abuse as Patrick Bamford and family targeted after Newcastle penalty

Leeds have released a statement on social media behaviour after individuals took to Twitter directing abuse at striker Patrick Bamford in the wake of his penalty miss this weekend.

The 29-year-old’s spot-kick was saved by Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope at a time when Leeds could have gone two-nil up in their crunch match at Elland Road on Saturday.

"Overnight Patrick Bamford and his family have received completely unacceptable online abuse including several threats via Twitter,” a club statement read on Sunday afternoon.

“The time for this behaviour to stop is now.

“Those making threats do not reflect our fan base and are not welcome at our club.

“We would like to thank all those supporters who have reached out to Patrick and his family to show their support.”

Bamford has been criticised in recent weeks for his form in front of goal, as Leeds fight to remain a Premier League club. The striker appeared to deactivate his Twitter account earlier this week after a video of the forward’s misses over the seasons was shared – and subsequently went viral – on social media.