Manchester United Scout Torben Aakjaer Sacked for Alleged Slurs on Facebook

Manchester United have sacked European scout Torben Aakjaer following an internal investigation into alleged offensive Facebook posts.

United were alerted to the situation by the Guardian, reported by Daniel Taylor of the publication. It is suggested that chief executive Ed Woodward and the club's main Scandinavian scout, Simon Wells, led the enquiry into status updates that were removed "minutes" after the Guardian made contact with Aakjaer.

Guardian Sport tweeted an image of the man in question:

It is alleged that Aakjaer referred to one mosque as a "conspiracy-potential prayer-shop." He is reported to also support Denmark closing its borders, saying the country needs "extra personnel on every crossover and exit so all that eastern Europe dirt and s--t can be kept out," according to Taylor.

Aakjaer has denied some of the comments, saying they may have been added by "someone who doesn't like me or Manchester United." He previously told the Guardian that his updates were "taken out of context" and that he would never use such "aggressive language," but he still stated his belief that Denmark should close its borders.

"I would never write 'dirt and s--t.' I've never written anything racist and it doesn't sound like me," said Aakjaer, per Taylor's article. "I am not racist at all and I am shocked. When I hear this it sends a different message of the person I am."

Alex Livesey/Getty Images

United released an official statement announcing that Aakjaer's contract with the club has been terminated, per Taylor's report: "The club received the evidence from the Guardian, launched an immediate investigation into the matter and has terminated our association with Mr Aakjaer. Manchester United is an inclusive organisation and will not tolerate this sort of behaviour."

Images of Aakjaer sharing lunch with Nemanja Vidic and Robin van Persie at United's Carrington training ground can be found on his profile, while other politically sensitive posts are reported to remain public.

One friend commented on the recent Charlie Hebdo attacks, saying that France should "throw the rest of all that s--t they have in their country out," a statement Aakjaer said that he "couldn't agree more" with, though he claimed to be referring to terrorists specifically. "Let's hope other countries including our beloved Denmark follows that example efficiently," read his alleged response.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Aakjaer also denied posting an image of pigs with the caption: "It's time to deploy our secret weapon against Islamists," noted by Taylor.

United have acted quickly, sending a strong message that the Premier League giants will act on any social media messages of a negative nature posted by their staff in the future.