Wayne Rooney has labelled Mohamed Salah “selfish” and called for the Liverpool forward to be dropped for the final match of the season. The former Manchester United captain criticised Salah’s recent social media post, which appeared to take a dig at manager Arne Slot.
After Liverpool’s 4-2 defeat to Aston Villa, Salah wrote that the club must return to being a “heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear”, echoing the philosophy of former boss Jurgen Klopp. This came amid a strained relationship between Salah and Slot, with the 33-year-old having been dropped to the bench in December and later announcing he would leave the club this summer.
Speaking on his BBC programme, The Wayne Rooney Show, Rooney described Salah’s actions as “sad” and “selfish”. He argued that Salah can no longer cope with the high-tempo football he demands, saying “his legs have gone”. Rooney urged Slot to keep Salah away from the squad for Sunday’s Premier League finale, drawing on his own experience of being left out of Sir Alex Ferguson’s final match at Old Trafford after a disagreement.
Rooney added: “That’s your manager. You can’t publicly disrespect him twice the way he has and get away with it. If I was Arne Slot, I’d have to pull rank and just say, listen, you’re not coming anywhere near the place.” He acknowledged that Slot is unlikely to follow his advice but insisted it would be the right decision.
