The discontent at Leicester City has snowballed almost as quickly as the club has tumbled down the standings.
It has reached a point where, this weekend, there will be a protest over how City are run. It is the latest and likely the biggest show of dissatisfaction from supporters towards the hierarchy, something that has been bubbling away for months.
The first true signs of fans mobilising in frustration at the organisation at City came in the summer, when a swathe of supporters signed up to the Foxes Trust.
There were a few reasons cited. The club were charging season-ticket holders £25 to receive a new physical card, rather than allowing them to retain the one many already had, giving dedicated supporters the sense that their club did not care about them.
City's player of the season and fan favourite Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was sold, in part to negotiate Profit and Sustainability Rules, with the financial management at the club, and the relegation, putting them in a precarious position with regard to the regulations.
A sponsorship deal was signed with an almost-unknown gambling company that have since had legal issues.
In the months since then, fans have tried to change the Foxes Trust from the inside in order to push the club harder and force positive change.
In the stands, grievances have been aired more loudly. Chants calling for the sacking of director of football Jon Rudkin have been more vocal and more consistent.
Now, fans are protesting. Under the banner Project Reset, fans will gather at the Local Hero pub an hour before kick-off on Saturday and march down Raw Dykes Road towards the King Power Stadium.
The organisers are encouraging supporters to wear yellow, a colour that is symbolic in the owner’s home nation of Thailand for its connection to the monarchy, and also to chant loudly in the 14th minute, a nod to the Adrien Silva transfer saga.
Project Reset, in a document titled ‘The Five Dysfunctions of a Failing Football Club’ listed reasons for the supporter discontent and as a basis for the protest.
The lack of communication from the hierarchy, leading to a lack of trust, is mentioned. Chairman Aiyawatt ‘Top’ Srivaddhanaprabha only speaks through his notes in the programme, chief executive Susan Whelan only through occasional club statements and director of football John Rudkin never does.
The last time any of the trio spoke to a member of the British media was close to a decade ago.
Also cited are the lack of ruthless decision making, a confused approach to managerial appointments and transfers, and a lack of accountability, with the results of the internal review neither revealed nor leading to any apparent changes at the top.
The final point is the declining results and the financial inability to change that. From the outside, that may be the most difficult to understand.
Because right now, City sit 18th in the Premier League, and that's about their historically average position. No side has as many promotions into the top flight as City do, at 13. That, of course, means there have been 12 relegations.
They are, historically, a yo-yo club. It’s perhaps why there have been accusations levelled at supporters, telling them they’re entitled.
But the problem is the speed with which City have declined. No side in Premier League history had ever had five top-half finishes in a row and then suffered relegation as City did.
A team’s wage bill is one of the best indicators of where they should finish in the division. City went down with the eighth biggest wage expenditure in the league.
To fall so sharply means there has been mismanagement, and it does feel like there has been a lack of acknowledgement over that as well as attempts to correct that.
So what does a reset look like? The organisers behind Project Reset want an explanation behind the club’s decline and a public plan on what is being done in response. They want regular communication from the top to the supporters.
And they want Rudkin out and a new director of football appointed, plus further staff to support that new recruit.
What they are not calling for is for King Power to sell up or for Top to leave, albeit they do believe goodwill towards the owners is declining.
The group behind Project Reset said: “The current discontent from fans should be acknowledged by the club in a meaningful way.
“While we respect that the Srivaddhanaprabha family have always maintained an incredibly discreet and secretive operation, the lack of direct communication in the face of a second successive relegation from the Premier League is quite frankly unacceptable.
“Our fans do not feel part of a broader vision or strategy, and therefore empty calls for 'unity' only reinforce the distance between the hierarchy and the fans.
“The group behind Project Reset feel strongly that LCFC needs fresh leadership at the board level, starting with a new director of football and appropriate supporting resources below this position.
“The remaining board members should also be refreshed periodically, as is normal in all corporate structures, to ensure appropriate checks and balances remain in place.
“Project Reset believes that Top is being let down by his leadership team and that too much power has been centralised between two to three key people, and their decision making has not been challenged sufficiently. Project Reset is not calling for Top/King Power to sell the club.
“Therefore we are asking for a reset, starting with a direct acknowledgment and explanation of what they feel has gone wrong (including the outcome of the infamous ‘internal review’) and then a plan of action to remedy this, including changes at the board level.
“We also note that ongoing direct and open communication with fans is absolutely critical for rebuilding trust and unity.”
So far, the organisers have remained anonymous. Calling for greater transparency but keeping their own identities hidden feels like a contradiction, but they are concerned their involvement may lead to stadium bans.
Estimating the number of supporters that will join the protest is difficult. But the organisers believe the number could reach into the thousands. Leicestershire Police are aware of it and the club have planned for it, having discussed it with the Fan Advisory Board.
There’s been no direct contact from the club to the organisers but manager Ruud van Nistelrooy did acknowledge it to an extent, expressing his relief that he lived in a country where such a protest was possible. It has been taken by the organisers as a show of support from the Dutchman.
The view reflected by van Nistelrooy is broadly the club's stance. They are not trying to shut down the protest nor censor fans' opinions. What remains to be seen is if they listen to, and act on, the demands.
The question over how many people join the protest, and whether it’s a one-off or a consistent event, feels like it will be decisive in whether it brings about change at City.
But, it does feel like the discontent has reached its tipping point, where inaction on the club’s part is not going to make the issue go away.
