SHEFFIELD UNITED manager Chris Wilder sees little chance of a long-term social media boycott in football but admits action must be taken over online abuse.

The past week has seen Chelsea forward Tammy Abraham, Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba and Reading’s Yakou Meite all racially abused on Twitter after missing penalties.

England head coach Phil Neville responded by calling for the football community to stay away from social media for six months to force action, while United defender Harry Maguire was among those calling for stricter verification of Twitter and Instagram accounts.

A one-day boycott was somewhat successfully organised in April by the Professional Footballers’ Association after a previous spate of incidents but Wilder, speaking ahead of his side’s Premier League game against Leicester on Saturday, is sceptical about Neville’s proposed response.

“There’s been talk of a boycott but I don’t think that will happen,” he said. “It might happen for a day or two but [social media has] become so much a way of life and it’s here to stay.

“It’s more down to those who regulate it to do something about it.

“I’m not on it and I stay a million miles away from it. I don’t feel like I need to promote the Chris Wilder brand.

“I read newspapers rather than use social media, although I see the benefits of that worldwide and I get it. But I’ve never got to grips with it.

“Obviously the negative side of it is that it allows people to abuse other people from behind a desk, miles away.”

Speaking on Wednesday to the media, Neville said: “We have to take drastic measures now as a football community. I’ve had it with my players on social media, the Premier League and the Championship have had it.

“I just wonder whether as a football community we come off social media, because Twitter won’t do anything about it, Instagram won’t do anything about it — they send you an email reply saying they’ll investigate but nothing happens.

“I’ve lost total faith in whoever runs these social media departments, so let’s send a powerful message: come off social media [for] six months. Let’s see the effect it has on these social media companies.”