Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson has backed Wilfried Zaha to help lead the fight against racism.

Eagles forward Zaha revealed over the weekend that he had been subjected to racist abuse on social media.

Zaha, 27, posted screenshots on Twitter of messages sent to his Instagram account ahead of Palace’s 2-0 Premier League defeat at Aston Villa on Sunday.

“Social media now is almost a modern artefact of racism because people can do this and can get it out there so lots of people can see it.

“Are these people racist or just using racist language? They say things because they’ve heard it and repeat it but do they understand what they are saying? It comes back to education and it’s key.

“I received abuse in my day but I got it in the post. I’d read it, rip it up or give it to the management.

“You might get another one two or three days later but now you can get four within 10 seconds.

“I got a bullet sent in the post once. It was scary and it wasn’t. If someone wanted to do you harm they would just do it. If you met them face to face, nine out of 10 wouldn’t know what to do.”