Rooney shocks Liverpool: Salah and Van Dijk have lost their spirit

Former England and Manchester United star Wayne Rooney has sharply criticized Liverpool's leaders, calling on them to show a stronger character on the pitch following the team's poor run of results in the English Premier League. Liverpool suffered their fourth consecutive defeat, falling 3-2 to Brentford, and continued their slide in the standings to seventh place, seven points behind leaders Arsenal. Speaking on his podcast, Rooney said: "No one expected what's happening to Liverpool right now. The team is going through a difficult period and needs real leaders to quickly restore its balance." He added: "Renewing the contracts of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk was an important step, but their performances do not reflect the extent of the responsibility placed on them, whether in terms of technical level or body language on the pitch." Rooney explained that the body language of senior players directly affects the performance of the entire team, pointing out that the mental decline before the technical decline is one of the reasons for the recent disappointing results. He concluded his remarks by saying, "If I were a Liverpool fan or coach, I would be very concerned about the team's current state," referring to the need to restore discipline and confidence ahead of the upcoming matches against Crystal Palace in the League Cup and Aston Villa in the league.