Ten Hag told to drop Ronaldo for Liverpool clash as Rooney highlights Man Utd's lack of energy - while also questioning Casemiro transfer

Wayne Rooney has told Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag to focus on getting "energy" on the pitch against bitter rivals Liverpool, even if it does come at the expense of Cristiano Ronaldo. The D.C. United manager feels that his former team-mate looked unfit during the Red Devils' shocking 4-0 loss at Brentford last time out, which saw them fall to the bottom of the table for the first time in 30 years.

Rooney doesn't think that Marcus Rashford should make the starting XI on Monday night either and says his recent form should be a "real concern" for Ten Hag going forward.

What did Rooney say about Ronaldo?

The United legend, who became the club's all-time record scorer between 2004 and 2017, has told The Times: "I wouldn’t play Cristiano Ronaldo, and I wouldn’t play Marcus Rashford.

"If I was in Ten Hag’s position my main concern would be getting energy on the pitch, and United’s failure to recruit a number nine means they relied on Ronaldo against Brentford, even though he hadn’t trained a lot with the team. 

"He looked like he needs time to get match fit. Ten Hag needs energy from his side and that may mean dropping Ronaldo."

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Rooney added on Rashford's struggles: "As for Marcus, I think he needs to do a lot of soul-searching and figure out what he wants, for his own good, before anything else.

"Because watching him is a real concern, he looks like he wants to be anywhere but on a football pitch."

What are Rooney's concerns regarding Casemiro?

United fans have been given a timely boost ahead of the clash with Liverpool, as the club has confirmed an agreement is now in place for Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro to complete a £60 million ($71m) switch to Old Trafford.

However, Rooney has described the move as a "reactive signing" and feels long-term target Frenkie de Jong would have been a better fit.

"This goes back to the need to look to the future," he said. "Ideally, they should be signing players in their early to mid-twenties, and Casemiro is similar to Christian Eriksen - someone who has been a good player, but are they going to help the club move forward? Frenkie de Jong, Ten Hag’s principal midfield target, would be a better fit.

"The Casemiro deal seems too have come from nowhere, and looks a reactive signing - I’d be surprised if he was a player identified as a priority to bring in when ten Hag arrived. 

"It looks like, having been unable to sign De Jong, United just reacted to Casemiro being available."