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Mohamed Salah's farewell jab at Arne Slot has come back to haunt him—at least according to several Premier League title winners.
Within Liverpool's supporter base, reactions to Salah's pointed social media post have been more measured. The post criticized the club's playing style under Slot and called for a return to the "heavy metal" football championed by his predecessor Jürgen Klopp.
Many fans fundamentally sympathize with Salah's grievances. Liverpool have oscillated between being dangerously exposed and grimly uninspiring as they stumble toward a fifth-place finish—assuming they can hold that spot. Regardless of what the departing winger said, the club's third-highest scorer of all time will always command unconditional loyalty from supporters he has served so admirably for nearly a decade.
Wayne Rooney has no such sentimental attachment. The former Everton and Manchester United striker is hardly a Liverpool admirer. Yet the five-time Premier League winner drew on his own experiences under the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson—rather than any club rivalry—to argue why Salah should be "nowhere near" Anfield for Liverpool's season finale on Sunday.
Wayne Rooney: The Same Happened to Me
"If I were Arne Slot, I'd keep him well away from the stadium in the final game," Rooney said on his self-titled podcast, recalling his own falling out with Ferguson in the summer of 2013. "I went through it with Alex Ferguson. We had a disagreement and a falling out, and at Ferguson's last match at Old Trafford, he left me out of the squad because of it."
Rooney's experience differs somewhat from Salah's current predicament. Ferguson and his striker had clashed over a rejected transfer request, leading the outgoing manager to exclude Rooney from his farewell occasion. In Salah's case, it is he who is departing Liverpool—not Slot (in all likelihood)—meaning any exclusion on Sunday would deny him a proper send-off.
"I find it unfortunate, given everything he's accomplished at Liverpool. It's not the right moment for him to take another swipe at Slot," Rooney added.
"He wants heavy metal football—basically, he's saying he wants Jürgen Klopp's style. But I don't think Mo Salah can handle that kind of football anymore. I think his legs have gone when it comes to playing at that tempo and intensity."
"He's essentially pulled the pin on a grenade and declared he has no faith in Arne Slot, while also putting his teammates—who will still be there next season—in an incredibly difficult position."
Gary Neville, Rooney's former United teammate, used the same explosive metaphor. "Mo Salah is walking out the door, and just as he's about to step through it, he's pulled the pin from a grenade and tossed it back into the room," the eight-time top-flight champion said on his own podcast.
However, Neville firmly dismissed the idea of Salah being left out this weekend. "He will play in the final game because of everything he's contributed," the retired defender said. "The notion of Liverpool appearing petty by refusing him his farewell appearance would cause real damage to the club.
"They're going to have to swallow a bitter pill this week."
Issue Extends Beyond Salah
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For both Rooney and Neville, Salah's outburst revealed deeper fractures running through the entire dressing room.
"I think Salah is trying to justify himself and ease his own conscience because he's had a very disappointing season," Rooney argued. "So I think he's been quite selfish in what he's done on both occasions. It's a shame, and fans will side with him—but when you look more closely at it, having been in a dressing room in a similar situation, Mo Salah knows exactly what he's doing."
The former striker went as far as to level the harshest of accusations at some of Liverpool's squad: a lack of commitment:
Several Liverpool players were seen 'liking' Salah's inflammatory Instagram post in an apparent show of solidarity. Salah further highlighted his own significant influence within the squad by posting a photo of himself dining with three of Liverpool's regular starters in the wake of his controversial remarks.
Neville echoed Rooney's concerns. "Those three or four who liked his post are the ones I'd be questioning—are they really on board?" he asked. Slot may well be asking himself the very same thing.