Pep Guardiola urged his employers to listen to Manchester City fans over their concerns ahead of an organised protest at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night. City fans are unhappy at various issues over tickets at the Etihad, from third-party re-sale partners like Viagogo, away fans obtaining tickets in home ends, a potential season ticket price rise, and other concerns over season ticket availability and a lack of engagement between club and supporters. Three fan groups have called for supporters attending Wednesday's fixture with Leicester to remain in the concourse for the first nine minutes of the game to represent the now nine official re-sale partners following last week's deal with Viagogo. If supporters do take their seats, they have been asked to remain silent to support the protest. Guardiola said on Friday that he sympathises with fans and backed their right to protest, later adding that a scheduled meeting later this week between the club and Fan Advisory Board City Matters can help both sides reach some common ground. "I want to be honest, I don’t know the reasons why [fans are protesting]," Guardiola said. "They have a meeting on Thursday with the fans. This is what they will talk [about]. This is a football club that depends on its fans, from Maine Road, from a long time ago. "Football clubs belong to the people and if the people don’t agree with something… they can legitimately express concerns with the club. And the club is open, listening to them, arriving in agreement so everybody can be satisfied." While the Viagogo partnership was the spark for the protest - scheduled specifically to put pressure on the club before the long-awaited City Matters meeting on Thursday - the frustrations come from a mountain of issues around tickets. The general theme among fans is that they don't feel valued as long-term supporters compared to newer fans or tourists who may sometimes have similar opportunities to purchase tickets. The 'Stop Exploiting Loyalty' campaign sums up that sentiment, and while there is a recognition that new supporters and tourists are welcome, fans want fairness from the club to recognise their contributions. Issues like season ticket members selling tickets back to the club - on average around 10 per cent of season ticket seats are sold back each match. On Friday afternoon, there were seats available on the City website in every block against Leicester, while fans could purchase a single ticket in a hospitality section for just £32 on Viagogo - rising to the hundreds for more expensive hospitality. When fans announced the protest, they wrote that 'football without the fans is nothing', and Guardiola leaned into that sentiment when he said: "They applaud when we won and they boo when they are dissatisfied with our performance. Imagine going to the stadium with no fans, it would make no sense. Our job would make no sense, close the door. "All I can say is that I – and we – need them. We need the support because we are playing for a lot. But who am I to not agree with the people expressing themselves? I can have my opinion but that is not relevant." It feels significant that Guardiola has offered his support to the fans' cause, especially going as far as to urge the club to listen to concerns at this week's meeting. However, an earlier comment felt just as telling when he backed the club in exploring different revenue opportunities. "The club has to be active in many departments in the decisions being made," he said in a more on-brand message. "The club has to take it for the benefit of the club. The club doesn't take it for granted." And that is the bottom line - City will always chase the new support and rightly so. The more fans they have the more money they can make (and more money that particular demographic are willing to pay on a matchday). But they mustn't forget the fans who have been there through it all. Both things can happen at the same time - looking after long-term fans and welcoming new support. So if the City directors watching on Wednesday don't pay attention to the protest, they should listen to their manager. Because both have the same outcome - listen to the fans and come to an agreement that suits everyone. It is not too late to fix the issue before it gets messier.