Former England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney slammed Mohamed Salah for publicly criticising Liverpool.
The saga involving Mohamed Salah and Liverpool refuses to slow down. The relationship between the two parties involved has hit the lowest after the Egyptian striker publicly criticised the club for throwing him “under the bus.” Salah’s comments came after Liverpool played out a 3-3 draw against Leeds United, and he was made to sit out for the third game in a row. According to the 33-year-old, his equation with manager Arne Slot has become non-existent amid Liverpool’s ongoing 2025-26 campaign, where the Premier League defending champions find themselves in ninth position with 23 points from 15 games.
However, Sala’s public comments have not pleased Manchester United and England legend Mohamed Salah one bit, and the former accused the Liverpool great of tarnishing his legacy at the club.
“Why would you come out and say that? Salah has been incredible for Liverpool. As a player, he is quiet; he keeps himself to himself. Last year, he was vocal about not being offered a new contract. He deserves to get the money he gets. But then you can’t flip it and say what he said. It was disrespectful to his teammates, to his manager, to the fans,” Rooney told the BBC.
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“Time catches up with all of us. This season, he hasn’t been at his best; he hasn’t been at his sharpest. Clearly, Slot has seen that and put him on the bench. He’s one of the main players, if not the main player, at Liverpool over the past few seasons. You want to see him roll his sleeves up. To have the arrogance to say that he doesn’t have to earn his place? You need to be at your best every week to stay in the team,” he added.
It is worth mentioning that Salah is set to depart for the Africa Cup of Nations, where he will represent Egypt on December 15. He could be unavailable for Liverpool for at least one month, depending on Egypt’s progress in the AFCON.
“If I was one of his teammate I wouldn’t be happy at all with what he said. This is when they need him most. If anything, he has thrown Liverpool under the bus with his words,” said Rooney.
“He’s either got to speak to the manager, and put something out, and try to put it right. Or leave the football club. It needs to be sorted out quickly,” he added.
Rooney’s message for Slot
The former England star did not stop there as he urged Liverpool boss Slot to leave Salah out for the Champions League fixture against Inter Milan on Wednesday.
Salah is one of the all-time performers for the Reds, scoring 250 goals in 420 appearances since joining the club from Roma in 2017. He had signed a contract extension earlier this year after helping Liverpool win the Premier League last season with 29 goals. It is worth mentioning that the previous season was Slot’s first as the manager of the club.
“Slot has to show his authority and say, ‘You are not travelling with the team, what you said isn’t acceptable, see yourself off to AFCON and let everything settle down’. Slot can take control of it. If I was Slot, there’s no way I’d have him anywhere near the team,” said Rooney.
However, Salah’s form has really nosedived in the ongoing season, scoring just four goals in 13 appearances. “His performances haven’t been great. I’m sure over the next couple of years, when he looks back, he will regret saying what he has said,” said Rooney.
“Only he can help him get out this situation, by playing better! Rather than looking internally, he’s looking for anything to put the blame on,” he added.
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