Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah is putting his legacy at the club at risk with his fiery reaction to being left out of the starting lineup, according to former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney.

Salah has missed the starting XI in Liverpool’s last three matches and publicly criticized the club and manager Arne Slot following Saturday’s 3-3 Premier League draw with Leeds United. The Egyptian claimed he had been made a scapegoat for Liverpool’s sluggish start to the season.

Since signing a two-year contract extension in April, Salah has cemented himself as an iconic figure at Anfield, scoring 250 goals across all competitions and winning two Premier League titles during his eight-year tenure. However, this season he has managed only five goals in 19 appearances.

Speaking on his podcast, Rooney said: “He is absolutely destroying his legacy at Liverpool. It would be sad for him to throw it all away. He’s gone about it all wrong. Arne Slot has to show his authority and pull him in, saying, ‘You are not traveling with the team. What you said is not acceptable.’

“Take yourself off to AFCON and let everything calm down. If I were him, there would be no way he would be in the team.”

Salah had expressed frustration at feeling “thrown under the bus” as Liverpool struggled to reproduce the form that won them the Premier League last season. Currently, the club sits ninth in the league, 10 points behind leaders Arsenal after 15 games.

Rooney added: “If anything, he has thrown Liverpool under the bus with his words. I’m sure over the next couple of years he will regret saying what he has.”