Man City facing mutiny: Nine-minute protest planned over club's controversial partnership which has caused 'distrust'

The Cityzens have announced a new partnership with Viagogo in a move that has not gone down well with supporters. Fan groups have now called on City fans attending Wednesday's Premier League match against Leicester at the Etihad Stadium to stay away from their seats for the opening nine minutes of the match in protest.

Supporters are unhappy with the agreement as there is a belief the tickets that are sold do not go to City supporters and negatively affect the atmosphere at matches. Fans are also concerned about safety issues at games and have highlighted how the situation can breed a lack of trust between supporters and the club.

A statement from statement from 1894, Trade Union Blues and the MCFC Fans’ Foodbank read: "We’ve seen record numbers of away fans in home and away ends, many of which who have used third-party agencies to obtain tickets at inflated prices. This has caused safety issues, and distrust amongst supporters who are unwilling to use the club’s Ticket Exchange in fears of where their ticket will end up - yet another ticket partner may only add to this."

The Football Supporters' Association also questioned the deal in a statement: "Plenty of clubs run their own in-house ticket resale platforms allowing supporters to pass on tickets to one another at face value. Why does any club need to engage a third-party company whose only reason for existence is to push up prices and profit from matchgoers? It feels instinctively unfair for clubs to penalise supporters for passing on tickets at face value to friends or family members while cosying up to these companies."

Manchester City are due to face Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday before Wednesday's match with Leicester.