St James' Park
St James' Park, Newcastle. REUTERS

Two teenagers have been arrested over racist abuse posted on Newcastle United footballer Sammy Ameobi's Twitter account.

Ameobi, the younger brother of fellow Newcastle striker Shola, was called a "n****r" by a user with the username @jonnnyPhipps after he tweeted a picture of a pair of black boots Sunday.

The 19-year-old subsequently retweeted the message and the attacker's account was then closed down.

Ameobi and Newcastle United both reported the incident to police.

A Northumbria spokesman said: "On Wednesday November 2 Northumbria Police arrested two young men, both aged 17, on suspicion of malicious communication.

"The arrests come after reports of a racist tweet being sent to one of the region's professional sportsmen."

Ameobi had posted a message alongside the photograph of the black Nike boots saying: "There will always be a place in my heart for the all blacks."

The follower replied: "Your hand is nearly the same colour. 'n****r'."

Retweeting the message, Ameobi added: "Sad to see some people are still racist nowadays.''