Wayne Rooney Urges Manchester United Players to ‘Do Better’ Amid Poor Start

The club’s current players have received a harsh message from Wayne Rooney, the all-time leading scorer for Manchester United, who stated they “need to do better” after a challenging start to the season under manager Erik ten Hag. Rooney, who is currently managing Plymouth, expressed his confidence in Ten Hag while critiquing the Red Devils team’s play.

Rooney discussed United’s current circumstances in an interview with Sky Sports. As of right now, the squad is in 14th place in the Premier League with just eight points from seven games played in the 2024–25 campaign. Even though he was disappointed, Rooney remained optimistic about Ten Hag, adding:

“I’m sure Erik Ten Hag is a fantastic manager.” In addition to winning trophies at Manchester United, he has won awards everywhere he has gone. “Yes, he is going through a challenging time. However, you have to hope he can turn things around because all too frequently, managers get fired and then there is a fresh start under a new boss.”

Rooney’s Exhortation to Players to Assist

“Players again, and I said this last season, need to do better than what they’re doing.” Rooney stated in a particularly harsh statement directed at the United players. In the past few years, there has been a significant change in the players. All you want is for them to start challenging you again.

Erik ten Hag is under more criticism because of Manchester United’s dismal start to the season—the team is having its worst-ever start to a Premier League season. Even if Ten Hag’s future with the squad seems questionable, Rooney’s remarks emphasize the significance of player accountability and imply that the team will need to work together to turn things around.

Ten Hag might be fired if the team’s performance doesn’t improve quickly, which would further complicate United’s already precarious situation.