A man was kicked unconscious during a vicious racist attack.

Witnesses said two thugs kicked the victim's head like a football as he lay helpless in the gutter.

He was attacked after he was subjected to racial abuse by one of the suspects in a late-night supermarket.

Security cameras captured the moment he was confronted in the food aisles at Cottinghams in Church Road, Hove.

Police have released this image of the main attacker and have appealed to the public to help identify him.

Witnesses told police there was an argument as the two men tried to get past each other and a racist remark was made.

The victim, who is 26 and lives in Hove, is of Pakistani origin.

He left the store and began walking along Church Road towards Brighton.

He was attacked from behind moments later by two men as he walked past nearby La Piazza Italian restaurant.

The victim, who does not want to be named, was punched on the head and knocked to the ground, rolling into the road.

He was then repeatedly kicked and punched in the head and body as he lay in the gutter and was briefly unconscious.

He was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, where he was treated for minor head injuries.

The attack happened just after 10.30pm on July 24 but the images taken by CCTV cameras at Cottinghams have only just been made public.

PC Dan Hiles said: "This was a horrible and sustained assault which lasted several minutes. Witnesses said they were kicking the victim's head as if it was a football.

"There was a confrontation between the first suspect in Cottinghams a few minutes earlier.

"As a result of the remarks which were made, we are treating this as a racially aggravated assault."

The first suspect was white, 5ft 8in, of medium build and in his early 20s.

He had closely cropped hair and was wearing blue jeans and a white light-coloured tracksuit top.

The second man was white, 6ft tall, heavily built, with brown curly hair and wearing a T-shirt and blue jeans.

Anyone with information should phone PC Hiles at Hove police station on 0845 6070999.