Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes he might know what's been behind Manchester United's relatively poor home form this season.
The manager said on Wednesday that banners, set up overtop most of Old Trafford's 76,000 seats in lieu of fans throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, may be the culprit. Most of the banners are a solid red colour, the same as United's primary jersey, and they could be hindering his players' decision-making process, according to Solskjaer.
"We have looked into this, and there shouldn't be any reason [why home form is worse] but some of the players have mentioned that, when making that split-second decision, to look to see if your team-mate is there or not, and the red shirt, on a red background, with red seats," Solskjaer said, as quoted by Sky Sports.
Solskjaer's men are currently second in the Premier League, with all four of their losses in the domestic campaign coming on home soil. Additionally, while United appear well on their way to securing a semifinal berth in the Europa League, the Red Devils have yet to actually win at Old Trafford during the current competition.
"When you have a 4-0 win away against Sociedad you don't have to win at home, and the first game against Milan, we conceded in the last minute. I still think we have played some good football at home," the manager said.
"We started off badly [in the Premier League] with three defeats, Palace, Tottenham and Arsenal early on, but we have improved."
On the eve of a crucial second leg of their quarterfinal against Granada, Solskjaer is leaving nothing to chance. When the United players step on the pitch at Old Trafford on Thursday, they'll be surrounded by black banners along the bottom section of the famed stadium.
"If you look at all the banners around the edge they are not red anymore," Solskjaer said.
Manchester United vs. Granada is, like all UEFA Europa League matches, available exclusively on DAZN in Canada. Click here for a free trial.