Wayne Rooney
Wayne Rooney offered a damning verdict on the state of Man Utd's current squad
Wayne Rooney claims there is no way back for the current Manchester United team and claimed up to 15 players need be offloaded.
United are languishing in 14 th place in the Premier League, after their worst season of the modern era, with only the Europa League left to play for. Former United captain Rooney was blunt when asked if there was a way back for the current side and said it needs a major overhaul to be competitive again.
Asked if there is a way back for the current team, Rooney said: “No, I don’t think so. They look lost. They look scared. Bruno Fernandes is the one who keeps producing.
“He annoys you at times, but keeps producing. They need massive changes to the squad, I think 10-15 players need to leave the club. Obviously, they can’t do that, but there is a mentality there where no one is taking responsibility in the squad.
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“I’d keep Bruno and Kobbie Mainoo. There's a culture at the club where it’s too easy to lose games and the players come out and say, ‘Onto the next one,’ and all that rubbish. Just show some character and fight on the pitch. It’s bad watching, it hurts.
“Being from Liverpool, but spending so many years at United, I want the team to do well, I’ve got my kids in the academy, and it hurts watching them.”
Rooney also revealed his old United boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, always gets in touch when his former striker loses his job as a manager. “Every time I get sacked from a managerial job, I get a text from Sir Alex,” said Rooney.
Another former United skipper, Roy Keane, criticised Sir Jim Ratcliffe for the the way the Old Trafford co-owner has handled the decision to sack up to 450 staff to cut costs.
Rooney thinks Kobbie Mainoo and Bruno Fernandes are two that should stay with Man Utd
“From the business side of it, you’d think he knows what he’s talking about,” said Keane, referring to Ratciffe's recent round of interviews.
“But saying that, on one hand they’re getting rid of lots of people and, on the other, they’re going to spend £2billion on a stadium. He can still look after people a little bit better.
“He's on about saving money at the club and we know the way that a lot of ex-players have been treated, the fund they had available, the staff that have been at the club for years.
“On one hand he’s still treating them badly, and I understand it’s a business and you’ve got to try and make the right decisions.
Gary Neville sat down with United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe earlier this week (
Image:
The Overlap/Youtube)
“But the next day they’re building a £2bn stadium for their fans around the world. You have to show loyalty to people that have been at the club for years.
“When he started talking about the football side of things, he lost me a little bit – talking about the squad, the budget, the players available, as they should still be doing better. But it was nice of him to front up.”
Gary Neville, who also captained United, said Ratcliffe criticised the Glazers, albeit indirectly, for the way they have run the club for the past 20 years, with £300million losses since 2020.
“When he says there's been mismanagement for 10 years and they’re running out of cash, he’s not blaming himself, he’s pointing towards the two management teams before him. He did indirectly criticise them.”
*Rooney, Keane and Neville were speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet
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