Wayne Rooney's Bold Call on Mohamed Salah's Future at Liverpool

Wayne Rooney has never been shy of a hard truth. This time, his crosshairs are fixed on Mohamed Salah – and on Arne Slot’s response.

On The Wayne Rooney Show, the former Manchester United and England captain called on the Liverpool manager to take a ruthless stance and leave Salah out of Liverpool’s final game of the season against Brentford, arguing the Egyptian has “publicly disrespected” his boss once too often.

Rooney’s anger stems from Salah’s latest social media post, in which the forward demanded a return to the “heavy metal” football associated with Jurgen Klopp. The message has been widely read as a pointed jab at Slot’s current approach.

“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.”

For Rooney, this wasn’t just a tactical gripe. It was a grenade lobbed into a dressing room he believes Salah is about to leave behind.

“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.”

This is not the first flashpoint. Earlier in the campaign, Salah was dropped after accusing Slot and Liverpool of throwing him “under the bus” over his reduced game time. The numbers on his legacy remain staggering – 257 goals for the club, a Premier League title, a 29-goal league haul last season – but the present picture is far less flattering. Just 12 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions this term, as Liverpool slide towards a fifth-place finish, has sharpened the focus on his form.

Rooney believes the outbursts are no coincidence.

“I think Salah's trying to vindicate himself and make himself feel better because he's had a very poor season,” he argued. “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.”

For Rooney, this is now a test of Slot’s authority. He drew a direct line back to his own experience with Sir Alex Ferguson, recalling how the legendary Manchester United manager left him out of his final game at Old Trafford after a disagreement. Status didn’t save him then; he doesn’t think it should save Salah now.

“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.”

The question of Salah’s farewell hangs heavy over Anfield. On one hand, a club legend, one of the defining forwards of the Premier League era. On the other, a player Rooney feels has chosen the wrong way to walk out the door.

“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.”

Salah’s storm arrives against a bleak backdrop for Liverpool. The title defence that once looked robust has collapsed. The energy that used to suffocate opponents has drained away. The famous Anfield roar, Rooney suggested, is being smothered by the team’s own passivity.

“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,” he said.

The fear factor has faded. The stands are restless. And on the pitch, Rooney sees something even more alarming.

“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.”

So the dilemma is stark. A fading icon pushing back against a system he no longer believes in. A manager under scrutiny, told by one of English football’s greats to draw a line in the sand.

Slot can bow to sentiment and give Salah his Anfield goodbye. Or he can do what Ferguson once did to Rooney: make a brutal call to protect the dressing room he has to lead into the future.