Wayne Rooney tears into 'selfish' Mohamed Salah for 'disrespecting' Arne Slot & urges Liverpool boss to deny Egyptian forward Anfield send-off

Rooney has urged Slot to take a ruthless stand against Salah by excluding him from Liverpool's final game of the season against Brentford. The Manchester United icon believes Salah has crossed a line after the forward took to social media to demand a return to the "heavy metal" football synonymous with Jurgen Klopp, a move widely interpreted as a direct shot at Slot’s current tactical setup.

Speaking on The Wayne Rooney Show, the former England captain expressed his disappointment at how the legendary winger is conducting himself during his final days on Merseyside. "I find it sad at the end of what he’s done and what he’s achieved at Liverpool," Rooney said. "It’s not the point for him to come out and aim another dig at Slot. He wants to play heavy metal football, so he’s basically saying he wants Jurgen Klopp football. Now I don’t think Mo Salah can cope with that type of football anymore. I think his legs have gone to play at that high tempo and high intensity."

"He's almost just dropped the grenade and said he doesn't trust and believe in Arne Slot and almost thrown his teammates who are going to be there next season and let them have to deal with that as well and put them into a position."

Salah was dropped earlier in the season after accusing Slot and Liverpool of throwing him "under the bus" amid a lack of regular starts. While Salah remains one of the greatest players to ever pull on a Liverpool shirt, scoring 257 goals for the club, Rooney feels the winger's recent conduct is an attempt to deflect from a dip in personal performance. After winning the Premier League title and scoring 29 league goals last term, Salah has managed just 12 goals in 40 appearances across all competitions this season as the Reds look set to finish fifth in the table.

"I think Salah's trying to vindicate himself and make himself feel better because he's had a very poor season," Rooney claimed. "So I think he's been very selfish in what he's done in the two occasions. It's a shame and fans will be on his side, but I think when you look deeper into it and having been in a dressing room in a similar situation to that as well, Mo Salah knows exactly what he's doing."

Drawing parallels to his own legendary career under Sir Alex Ferguson, Rooney suggested that Slot must assert his authority to maintain discipline within the dressing room. He recalled being left out of Ferguson’s final game at Old Trafford following a disagreement, suggesting that a similar "pulling of rank" is required at Anfield to ensure the manager's position is not further compromised by a departing player.

"If I was Arne Slot, I’d have him nowhere near the stadium in the last game," Rooney insisted. "I had it with Alex Ferguson. I had a disagreement and fall out and at Alex Ferguson’s last game at Old Trafford, he left me out of the squad for that reason. That’s your manager. You can’t publicly disrespect him twice the way he has and get away with it. And that’s where if I was Arne Slot, I’d have to pull rank and just say, listen, you’re not coming anywhere near the place on Saturday, whether you like it or not. I really doubt he will do it, but I think he should."

Regarding Salah’s imminent exit, Rooney remained firm: "Of course he deserves a good send off but does he deserve it just for this? It’s the second time he’s done it. It’s just a shame to see one of the great icon of Premier League players leave the Premier League probably in this situation."

The controversy surrounding Salah comes amidst a broader slump for Liverpool, whose title defence has collapsed in dramatic fashion. Rooney noted that the lack of intensity on the pitch is not only affecting results but also the atmospheric "fear factor" at Anfield, with the crowd growing increasingly frustrated. He even suggested that some members of the squad appear to have "downed tools" during a difficult run of form, and insisted that Slot should be given more time to turn things around.

"I think that's the biggest change for me where you go to Anfield, the first thing you want to do is quieten the crowd. But I think actually by Liverpool not pressing they're quietening the crowd down themselves and frustrating the Liverpool fans," Rooney said. "And so that's the big, big change for me. I’m quite split in should he go or should he stay because he won the league last season, I think he deserves a bit more time, in terms of what we’ve seen this season. I don't feel right or good saying this, some players look like they've downed tools and that's a big problem if you see that or you feel that for the manager."

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