Monday 19 September 2016 13:31, UK
Former Liverpool defender Phil Babb says Wayne Rooney needs to improve on his performances this season and expects the Manchester United striker to be rested this week.
Rooney's position as United captain has once again come under scrutiny in the wake of the club's disappointing 3-1 defeat at Watford on Sunday.
England's all-time record goalscorer has found the net just twice in his last 17 games and failed to have a shot on target against the Hornets.
The Red Devils have now lost their last three matches and Babb says Rooney is running the risk of losing both the captain's armband and his place in Jose Mourinho's starting line-up.
"If you're reading the stats, and I know that Mourinho does, you would argue - what is he doing?," said Babb. "Is he effective? Even though he has the armband on is he really driving this team?
"You could argue that he isn't but we know that Rooney is a class player. In a week where no one in the side is firing, he - obviously with his high profile - will get a lot of the flack being the skipper.
"I can see him being rested quite a lot this season under Mourinho and maybe even this week because he's going to need to freshen it up and make changes."
United boss Mourinho is also facing growing pressure less than four months after taking charge at Old Trafford. Sunday's loss at Vicarage Road condemned the Portuguese to his worst run of defeats in over a decade.
Mourinho has heavily criticised the club's youngsters for the recent run of poor form - blaming Luke Shaw for Watford's second goal after slating Jesse Lingard's performance in the Manchester derby defeat earlier this month.
However, Babb believes Mourinho needs to assign some of the blame to the club's senior players, such as Rooney, as well as himself.
"I don't think Mourinho knows his starting 11 - his best preferred starting 11 at the moment. He keeps chopping and changing," Babb said.
"Mourinho keeps talking about the youngsters coming under fire but sometimes you've got to have chat with your senior players - certainly someone who has been at the club so long.
"You've got to say 'Come on Wayne, I need your help from a skipper's role to lift everyone else at the club and have more of an impact on the pitch'."
