Former England captain Wayne Rooney has said the toughest moment in a footballer’s career is accepting the point when their best years are behind them, reflecting on his departure from Manchester United.
Rooney spent 13 seasons at Old Trafford after a £27m move from Everton in 2004, making 559 appearances, scoring 253 goals and winning five Premier League titles, the Champions League, Europa League and FA Cup. He left in 2017 aged 31 after slipping down the pecking order.
Speaking on The Wayne Rooney Show, as reported by BBC Sport, Rooney said players must recognise when their level drops.
“I did it at Manchester United when Zlatan Ibrahimović came in and I wasn’t playing. I wanted to play so I left straight away. I accepted it,” he said.
Rooney compared his experience to that of Mohamed Salah, who is expected to leave Liverpool FC at the end of the season after nine years at Anfield.
The 33-year-old forward has won the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and Club World Cup with Liverpool but has struggled by his own standards this season. He is set to play fewer than 30 league matches for the first time at the club and has seven league goals and six assists so far.
“I said this since the start of the season, age gets to us all and your legs go. I think that’s happened to Salah this season and Virgil van Dijk hasn’t been the same this season,” Rooney added.
He said dips in form from senior players affect the wider squad. “They are the leaders in the dressing room. It’s hard for the other players to go and leave their mark or become the leaders.”
Rooney stopped short of urging Van Dijk to leave Anfield but warned some players remain at clubs too long. “I don’t think he will [leave] but you’ve seen players when they’ve stayed there for too long.”
Both Salah and Van Dijk peaked under former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp, who delivered the Champions League in 2019 and the club’s first league title in 30 years in 2020 before stepping down in 2024.
Rooney admitted admiration for Klopp’s personality and influence. “Klopp was the only Liverpool manager I’ve looked at and would’ve loved to play for him, not for Liverpool, obviously.”
He also compared Klopp with current boss Arne Slot. “I said about Arne Slot that he doesn’t have the aura that Klopp has. What Klopp brought, even when he’s walking around a restaurant with a bottle of beer, that’s what the people of Liverpool like.”
