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Rooney says Manchester United players are ‘hiding’ and need to ‘fear’ Solskjaer

Wayne Rooney believes Manchester United’s players need to ‘fear’ manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The Norwegian made a positive impact after replacing Jose Mourinho on an interim basis in December, winning 14 of his first 19 matches in charge.

The club’s form however dipped following his permanent appointment, with the club missing out on qualification for next season’s Champions League after a six-game winless run at the end of the season.

Former Manchester United forward Rooney, the club’s all-time record goalscorer with 253 goals, believes the players are ‘hiding’ and thinks Solskjaer must strike ‘fear’ into the squad if he is to revive the club’s fortunes.

“I think the players need to fear someone,” he told The Wayne Rooney Podcast.

“They need to fear Ole Gunnar [Solskjaer]. They need to fear Michael Carrick. They need to respect them but fear them also.”

Rooney was also critical of the players, saying several of the squad are ‘hiding’ and need to ‘take responsibility’ for their own shortcomings.

“The way the game has gone has changed, society has changed. You have got social media.

“You have got players losing a game and posting something on social media about their new clothing range, their new aftershave, whatever they’re bringing out, which I find remarkable.

“When fans speak up on it and say ‘why are you posting that?’ they always have the marketing people to blame [but] take responsibility.

“They work for you. Those marketing people work for you. I have people who do similar stuff for me and they never do anything without my instructions.

“If that is what you’re doing, you’re sitting at the top of that business. You have to take responsibility for them.

“These players almost always like to find someone to hide behind, whether that is on their social media or on the football pitch and that’s what they are doing.”

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