Virgil van Dijk has hit back at Wayne Rooney as he criticised the "absolutely ridiculous takes" of his side’s poor form.

The Reds’ season had been plunged into crisis after six defeats from seven games in all competitions and four in a row in the Premier League. After the recent 3-2 defeat at Brentford, Rooney laid into Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah.

He said: "This is a time when the manager and the leaders in the team need to figure it out very quickly. Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, they've signed new deals, but I don't think they have really led the team this season."

But speaking following his side’s 2-0 victory over Aston Villa on Saturday night, a game in which Salah scored his 250th goal for the Reds, the Dutchman took aim at Rooney.

“I didn’t hear him last year," he said. "He’s obviously a legend, a big player of the game, inspired so many, I can say all the only positive things....