Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Manchester United's recent loss of form could be partly due to off-field issues but is hoping supporters can give his side a lift against Fulham on Tuesday.
The Red Devils lost back-to-back Premier League home games against Leicester City and Liverpool last week in a little over 48 hours amid a backdrop of fan protests against the club's ownership.
Supporters forced the initial clash with Liverpool two weeks ago to be postponed late on after demonstrating inside and outside Old Trafford.
United had to alter their pre-match plans for both the rearranged clash with Liverpool and the loss to Leicester to ensure their players were in the stadium well ahead of kick-off.
Solskjaer admits the disruption affected his squad and, ahead of United welcoming fans to Old Trafford for the first time in 14 months, the Norwegian has called for unity.
"I didn't want to use it as an excuse because we lost two games but surely it's a reason behind the performances," Solskjaer said at a news conference on Monday.
"I'm not saying it didn't affect them, but I was impressed with how professional they were and how they went about it.
"I think the mood in any club and the relationship between the team and the fans is vital to what happens on the pitch.
"The players are all human beings, we're all human beings, and we will react to getting our supporters back in a positive way.
"They have always given us extra energy and hopefully the players will give the fans a reason to cheer and that's what we have to focus on. It's a big game for us in that respect."
Tuesday's visit of Fulham will see up to 10,000 in attendance for United's final home game of the season as coronavirus restrictions continue to be eased in the United Kingdom.
Victory for United would guarantee a second-place finish in the Premier League for just the second time since Alex Ferguson retired at the end of the 2012-13 season.
Jose Mourinho was in charge for that previous occasion and described it as one of his best achievements in management, but Solskjaer will not celebrate finishing so far behind Manchester City.
"The competition is a lot harder now than when I was a player," he said. "Of course, you have three, four, maybe five teams that challenge for the top two positions.
"The top two positions have been taken by two teams in the past few years and for us to move into them and divide them is a good performance, but it's not an achievement.
"You can't say it's an achievement. We've taken steps as a team, we're not where we want to be. We know we have some deficiencies as a group.
"There are parts of the game we need to improve on but I've felt we’ve made strides in most places.
"I've been very pleased with the players this season, I've got to say. I've been impressed by them, but we want to take the next step as well."
United have won 18 of their past 22 Premier League meetings with Fulham and are unbeaten in their last 12 against them in the competition, winning 10 of those.
Solskjaer's side follow up Tuesday's fixture with a trip to Wolves on the final day, before turning their focus to the Europa League final with Villarreal on May 26.
That game in Gdansk offers Solskjaer a chance to win his first piece of silverware as United boss, but he is not thinking about that game with two Premier League matches still to go.
"You know whatever team I pick against Fulham, it has to be a team that gives everything," he said.
"If you go into a game tentative, if you have something else in your mind, you don't fly into the tackles as you should, you don't sprint as normal, you don't maybe focus as much.
"There's more of a danger of getting hurt in that kind of position. We want to build momentum, we want to build confidence because of course we've lost the last two at Old Trafford.
"We don't want to go into an important game with bad momentum or a bad feeling, so we use these two games to get results but also to get confidence."
United have lost their final home league game of the season in just one of the previous 13 campaigns, doing so against Cardiff City in 2018-19.
The Red Devils have Daniel James and Anthony Martial back, but Harry Maguire and fellow centre-back Phil Jones are both out.
Randle to be evaluated after exiting Knicks win with ankle sprain
Julius Randle will undergo evaluation on Thursday after exiting the New York Knicks' 101-92 win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday with a left ankle sprain.
Randle was hurt after his left leg landed on Heat center Bam Adebayo's left foot as he pulled down a rebound with 2:40 remaining in the second quarter.
The Knicks forward was helped up and initially stayed in the game but was visibly incapable of playing on and ruled out at half-time.
"It'll be evaluated tomorrow," Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters. "It's a sprain, that's about the extent of it. We'll see where he is tomorrow."
Thibodeau was unable to clarify the extent of the injury when asked if trainers thought it was a high ankle sprain.
Randle will be a key part of the Knicks' upcoming playoffs campaign, averaging 25.4 points, 10.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists this season. The All-Star produced a career-best 57 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves last week.
The Knicks are in the five seed slot in the Eastern Conference with a 44-33 record, with the playoffs due to starton April 15.
"It's all part of it, injuries happen," Thibodeau said. "When you have a guy who's averaging 24/10/4, we're not going to replace him with one player.
"What we can do is work hard as a unit to come together and work to replace him."
Randle is a two-time All-Star, who won the NBA's Most Improved Player in 2021.
Sinner advances to maintain excellent Miami Open form, evening session cancelled due to rain
Italian 10th seed Jannik Sinner downed Emil Ruusuvuori to secure his berth in the Miami Open semi-finals along with bringing up his 20th win of the season on Wednesday.
Sinner, who dropped only one point on first serve, won 6-3 6-1 over the Finn in one hour and 16 minutes.
The 21-year-old Italian will face either top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or 2022 Indian Wells winner Taylor Fritz in the last four. Sinner lost to Alcaraz in the Indian Wells semi-finals a fortnight ago.
Alcaraz and Fritz's Miami quarter-final was postponed to Thursday with persistent rain forcing the evening session in Miami to be cancelled.
The other quarter-finals between 14th seed Karen Khachanov and 25th seed Francisco Cerundolo along with fourth seed Daniil Medvedev and qualifier Christophr Eubanks were also re-scheduled for Thursday.
The Sinner-Ruusuvuori clash was also impacted by a two-hour rain delay, but the Italian prevailed to maintain his perfect record in Miami, having not dropped a set.
"We both played well today but I won the important points," Sinner said. "It's never easy when you are up and you get interrupted, but I came back and played well."
Sinner's run to the Miami semi-finals has seen him drop the fewest games (23) since Rafael Nadal (21) and Novak Djokovic (23) in 2014.
The Italian became the seventh male to reach the semi-finals at both Indian Wells and Miami in a single year before turning 22, joining an elite list in Andre Agassi (1990), Jim Courier (1991), Djokovic (2007), Andy Murray (2007 and 2009), Nadal (2008) and Alcaraz (2022).
Sinner's 2023 record is now 20-4, bettered only by Medvedev (26-3) and Cameron Norrie (21-5).
'Nobody is perfect' – Pioli insists Napoli not 'unbeatable' ahead of Champions League showdown
Stefano Pioli insisted "nobody is perfect or unbeatable" as Milan prepare to overthrow Napoli in the all-Italian Champions League quarter-final clash.
Milan and Napoli will meet for the first time in European competition on April 12 in the first leg at San Siro, with Luciano Spalletti's side flying high in Serie A and UEFA's top club competition.
The Partenopei are 19 points clear at the Italian top-flight summit and suggested by many as a potential challenger for the European crown.
But Milan have only lost one of their nine all-Italian showdowns in Europe (W4 D4) and Pioli sees no reason why the Rossoneri cannot dream of progressing past Spalletti's in-form side.
The Milan coach said: "Honestly, I'd rather not meet an Italian side. In the Champions League it's better to face a foreign club. Napoli are very strong but we want to play for it.
"They have shown great consistency, strength and quality, they have all the characteristics of a great team, but nobody is perfect or unbeatable."
Pioli's side have not reached the last eight in the Champions League since the 2011-12 term when they were eliminated by Pep Guardiola's Barcelona.
Milan last went beyond that stage in the 2006-07 season en route to lifting the trophy but overcoming Napoli will prove an incredibly difficult challenge.
Napoli have won each of their past three away matches against the Rossoneri, their best such run against them, although they have not triumphed in any of their past five trips to Milan in cup competitions.
Pioli wants to build on Milan's Champions League history but says the Rossoneri cannot take their eyes off the Serie A top-four battle, leading fifth-placed Roma by just a point.
"It's part of the history of this club and the path it has always followed," he added. "We are beginning to write our history, that of Milan in the Champions League is a different path from ours.
"When you go to San Siro to play the Champions League it is something exciting and spectacular that involves everyone.
"We are very busy but we are also focusing on the league. To make this season a positive one, we have to play in the Champions League next year. We have to be careful."
Before the mouthwatering European meeting, Milan visit Napoli in Serie A on Sunday with the Rossoneri's Scudetto soon seemingly heading for Naples.
Pioli's side have been unable to replicate their exploits from last season's title-winning campaign, though the Italian suggested Milan's young side would always struggle to defend their title.
"I don't think there are many teams in Europe that immediately win the second league," he continued. "We won with a very young team, thanks to a project and a club path we are proud of.
"We are one of the few clubs with a sustainable project; only a few teams manage to win and be competitive in Europe.
"That is a leap that we have not yet been able to make but this year too gives us the opportunity to understand great things, to improve and be the strongest club."
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