Wayne Rooney has once again fired indiscriminately at Mohamed Salah. The former Manchester United striker, always clear and unfiltered, said that the Egyptian “is destroying his legacy” at Anfield after the ’11’ ‘red’ unburdened himself publicly by stating that he felt “pushed under the bus” by the club and that his relationship with Arne Slot is completely broken.
Salah, 33, has not started three games; at Leeds he did not even take the field in the 3-3 draw; and he exploded after the match. “Suddenly we have no relationship. It seems that the club has thrown me under the bus and they want all the blame to be mine,” he said at Elland Road. A speech that Rooney did not like at all, who in his podcast, The Wayne Rooney Show, demands a strong hand from the Dutch coach. “Slot has to show authority. Tell him that he does not travel, that what he has said is unacceptable. Let him go to the AFCON and let everything calm down. I would not put him in,” he said.
His comment was arrogant and at a time when Liverpool need him most
For Rooney, the dilemma is clear: either Salah rebuilds bridges with his coach or his future at Liverpool ends here. “It has to be sorted out now,” he insisted. And he went further by questioning why such a rant from a footballer who has scored 250 goals in 420 games since arriving at Anfield in 2017. “He is ruining his legacy. It’s sad to see him throw it all away,” added the Englishman, who believes that the Egyptian “has handled all this terribly”. These are his numbers as a ‘red’ player:
- 250 goals and 113 assists
- Premier League titles: 2
- EFL Cups: 2
- Champions League: 1
- FA Cup: 1
- FIFA Club World Cup: 1
“Salah has thrown Liverpool under the bus”
Liverpool’s performance does not help to put out the fire: Jurgen Klopp’s side are ninth, 10 points behind leaders Arsenal, and have won only seven of their first 15 league games. Salah has scored four goals in 13 Premier League games, a far cry from the 29 he scored last season before signing a new contract until 2026.
Rooney also criticised some recent words from the striker, in which Salah said that “he did not have to fight every day for his place because he had already earned it”. “Time catches up with us all. This year he is not at his best. You have to prove it every week. If I was his teammate, I would be very upset. His comment was arrogant and at a time when Liverpool need him most,” he said.
In the opinion of the former England international, Salah was “disrespectful to his teammates, his coach and the fans”: “He has created a negative environment in a dressing room with many new players. He will regret this,” he said.
It’s not the first time Rooney has targeted the No.11
Rooney had already pointed this out just a few weeks ago, after a painful 3-0 defeat at Anfield against Nottingham Forest. He then suggested that Slot should drop the Egyptian to send a message: “Salah is not helping in defence. If you are a new signing and you see a legend not running, what message does that give you?”Despite his only five goals this season, Salah has just had a historic campaign: top scorer, top assist provider and Player of the Season in the Premier League. But even that does not stop the Englishman’s discourse. “They’re in a bad moment, Jota’s injury has hit them, but that’s no excuse not to fight or put your foot in,” Rooney concluded about a Liverpool side that is languishing in mid-table with 18 points from 12 games.
As uncertainty grows over his involvement in Liverpool’s next match, according to a tweet from Fabrizio Romano, Salah could be left out of the squad for the trip to Italy and the clash with Inter on Tuesday, following his harsh statements about his relationship with Arne Slot. The club is holding internal discussions and a final verdict is expected today, while Slot will speak to the press to clarify the situation.
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