Supporters, under “Project Reset,” plan to wear yellow and chant on 14 minutes to highlight concerns over the club’s decline.
Van Nistelrooy acknowledged their frustrations but urged them to rally behind the players in their fight for Premier League survival.
“Thank God we live in a society where there is freedom of speech and everybody who feels they should let their voice be heard in a good way is free to do that,” van Nistelrooy said at his press conference.
“We have to all be happy that we can do that.”
“When you play in front of your home crowd and there is a connection with that crowd on a tackle, or on a pass, or on a cross, or in difficult moments where the support is lifting you, I know, from experience as a coach but also as a person who loves football, what it does to a team. I can only hope that the support will be behind the players.
“It’s good that if there is anything you want to get off your chest, individually or in groups, as I said before, thank God we live in a society where that’s possible. But when the whistle starts at 12.30 until the end of the game, I can only hope the players are fully supported by the crowd and it will lift them.”