Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah is destroying his legacy at the club with his furious reaction to being left out of the team, says former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney.
Salah has not started the last three matches and vented against the club and manager Arne Slot after the 3-3 Premier League draw against Leeds United on Saturday (6), saying he had been made a scapegoat for the team’s poor start to the season.
The Egyptian, who signed a two-year contract extension in April, became an iconic figure in an eight-year spell at Liverpool in which he won two Premier League titles and scored 250 goals in all competitions.
However, he has only scored five goals and appeared in 19 games this season.
“He is completely destroying his legacy at Liverpool,” Rooney said on his podcast. “It would be sad for him to throw it all away. He handled the situation the wrong way.”
“Arne Slot needs to show his authority and call him to say: ‘you are not going to travel with the team, what you said is not acceptable’,” said the former striker. “Go to the Africa Cup of Nations and let everything calm down. If I was the coach, there would be no chance of him being in the team.”
Salah said he felt “betrayed” by Liverpool, who have been unable to repeat the performance that took them to the title last season.
The team is ninth in the current campaign, ten points behind leaders Arsenal after 15 games.
“In fact, he betrayed Liverpool with his words…” Rooney said. “I’m sure in the years to come he will regret what he said.”
