Erik ten Hag needs Manchester United's fans to help him overcome one of his biggest challenges

When it comes to the art of laying the foundations to compete for silverware, boasting a good home record is something that usually helps.

This season, between them, Liverpool and Manchester City have lost just two Premier League home games, with City suffering both defeats. Manchester United, by comparison, have lost four times in the league on their own patch, providing just one nugget of evidence as to why they are currently light-years behind the title contenders.

Those that have visited Old Trafford week in, week out this season will have become familiar with the sight of seeing visiting supporters enjoying themselves in the away end. That is because United have been nowhere near good enough on their own patch this term.

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Including penalty shootout defeats, United have lost seven of their 26 home games in all competitions this season. At first glance, a record of seven defeats in 26 games does not seem too bad. But it is when you dive a little deeper into the manner of each of those defeats that the reality of just how poor they've been at Old Trafford this season hits home.

As well as being beaten four times in the Premier League at Old Trafford - including the embarrassing 5-0 defeat to Liverpool in October - United also crashed out of all three cup competitions at Old Trafford. West Ham United knocked them out of the Carabao Cup, Middlesbrough, on penalties, dumped them out of the FA Cup and Atletico Madrid ended their hopes of a trophy by sending them packing in the last 16 of the Champions League.

Therefore, it is hardly surprising that United's supporters have not had much to shout about this season, is it?