Rooney unleashes X-rated blast at Man Utd players who 'look like they don't care'

Wayne Rooney has torn into Manchester United’s players following Sunday’s 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth, delivering an expletive-laden broadside in which he said he would love to walk into the dressing room and shove a firework “up their a****” to jolt them into life.

Speaking on the Stick to United podcast, the club’s record goalscorer — who turns 41 this year — said the squad appeared emotionally vacant and accused several players of going through the motions. “Put a f** firework up their a** because they’re not doing anything,” Rooney said. “We’re seeing players who are numb, look like they’ve got no emotion, look like they don’t care.”

Rooney reserved particular frustration for the lack of basic effort, contrasting it with his own playing days. “I could score a goal, had ability or whatever, at least I f** ran and put myself about as a team,” he said. “These players are not doing that. I’d love to go in that dressing room and say, ‘What the f* are yous all doing? Do you think you deserve to wear the shirt?’”

The defeat left United in turmoil, with the players booed off the pitch at Old Trafford while the club’s hierarchy also came in for fierce criticism. Head coach Michael Carrick, who has managed just two wins from 11 matches, is nevertheless set to take charge of the trip to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

Rooney also revisited his earlier criticism of the squad for giving supporters and owners false hope. He pointed to the improvement United showed during Carrick’s temporary stint last season — which ended with a third-place finish and Champions League qualification — as evidence that the players are capable of more but have failed to sustain it.

“We’re not that Manchester United, look a million miles from the previous winning teams,” Rooney said. “The fundamentals of the game still have to be there. It’s at best a mid-table team — but if you look at all the mid-table teams, what do they get? They get players working hard, running.” He added that the pain and anger visible on supporters’ faces during the Bournemouth defeat made his exasperation impossible to contain.