A question for those who remember the bad old days ... which is more nerve wracking, relegation last days or title deciders?

It’s a bloody good question. Relegation is without doubt worse.
However, I want this club which we all love to establish itself as a permanent powerhouse at the top. Therefore as it’s in our hands today, the nerves are about a possible missed opportunity to notch up title number 8.
 
Neither have really been nerve racking, but the relegation (s) were more emotionally racking, the last minute tight title deciders have been rolacoasters on the day, but in my mind, that I could take comfort in a really good season and get over them.

Liverpool and stoke especially proper did me in for days, the stoke game had me in bits later on when it sank in more and more, we lose today, I will be over it by morning at the latest.
 
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Some of my best days as a City fan were as a consequence of us being relegated. Charlton, Bradford, Gillinghsm and Blackburn were all possible because of previous failures, so the answer to the question isn’t a binary one.

I think Stoke and Luton were the worst. The latter because up to that point I’d just assumed City and the top flight were synonymous with each other and we were entering the unknown; the former because, older and slightly wiser, I knew it wasn’t a given we’d bounce straight back.

I think, for me, today is about protecting the legacy of this incredible squad. They are plainly better than the Liverpool squad, as the head to heads in the league in recent seasons suitably demonstrate, and losing it on the last day, and Liverpool winning the treble (as we did) and possibly the quadruple would serve to undermine that legacy to some extent, in both relative and actual terms, which would be unwarranted, but inevitable. The fact that Liverpool winning the lot would make their supporters even more insufferable accentuates that fear.

Think we’ll get the job done though. I’m not a betting man (although I am an inveterate gambler!) and I’d say the chances of us winning today have to be 95% plus. You never know in football, it’s why we love it so much, but if you had to win to ensure the title you couldn’t ask for much more than a game at home against a team with nothing to play for, knowing exactly what you need to do.

Either way, as usual, I’ll be there, and I’ll be there again next season. What a journey this has been.
 
Relegation surely is worse I think. The implications across the club and fanbase rolls into the next season. Notwithstanding the financial aspect and job losses etc. This year the title decider is great for the neutral but nervy for us and not helped by the media build up. However, as already mentioned in here, the prospect of the dippers getting the quad is a game changer. No other team will better that in a season only equal it which changes the dynamics of expectancy. That coupled with the continued 'Scouse suckfest' will add to the misery and all we will hear is how City bottled it in the 2021/22 season (FA Cup semi, Chumpions League Semi and Premier League). Best 11 out today Pep no messing about get the job done, end of. CTID
 
samarasra said:
In many of the bad old days there were relegation deciders pre Christmas, game after game searching for 40 points I almost became immune to it. I find this constant fear of failing to win much more stressful than what used to be the fear of failure.
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They say it's the hope that kills you. I suppose more than hope, it's now media fed expectations and ridicule if you fail that has made being a fan of a successful team more stressful than a team in freefall.

I'm sure that amongst all of us we will feel a tremendous relief that almost 10 months of pressure ends today. Strangely the summer break is the only time you can sit back and revel in being champions but even then there isn't much revelling because those who support teams that failed are nowhere to be found and it all starts again so soon with the same teams playing for the same trophies and the same media peddling the same nonsense. It's the epitome of futility as the previous years achievements are consigned to the history books as irrelevant by the media in their attempts to sell the latest version of the same shit as the best and most important ever.
 
Pam said:
I remember Luton and bloody David Pleat (barely but just about) and then the debacle when we thought a draw would do on the last day and we were keeping it in the corner with Niall Quinn screaming "no, we need 3 points"! And then getting relegated at Ipswich has always haunted me for some reason. And the bloody Stoke thing, when we scored 5 or 6 and went down anyway. Don't even go there. Win lose or draw, tomorrow, nothing comes close to those vile relegation games for me. Tomorrow is terrifying for us but I feel for Burnley and Leeds fans. It's worse for them.

Anyway, do you agree, those of you who remember those times?
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Different feelings.

A season builds it’s excitement levels the closer you get to a title, promotion, or cup final. You’re up for it, you’ve got a feeling of ‘needing to achieve success’.
Win and it’s pure unbridled joy and celebration. Lose and it’s shit for a minute but good that you got there and know you could win again next season.

A season builds it’s dread levels the closer you get to a relegation. You’re fearing it, you’ve got a feeling of ‘needing to avoid failure’.
Win and it’s pure unbridled relief but there’s nothing to celebrate, you’re still shit and have the threat of getting relegated the next season. Lose and it’s doom and gloom.
 
I felt a certain kind of inevitability with relegation, city doom you may call it I guess. Plus had much more experience with that when younger, we used to be a right yo-yo club at times!

I actually quite liked the idea of playing all new teams and the hope that at least we'd be better in a group of less talented clubs. Which hardly ever worked out as planned. When City rolled into town suddenly every Mansfield, County and Town wanted their turn to kick you square in the nuts.

But I find the rivalries at the top, even if Liverpool fan and the media do fuel them desperately, the fact that it comes down to one or the other, year after year, means a title chase is more nerve wracking for me. I don't particularly like Stoke, or Luton or whoever, but Liverpool, and their fans, are largely unlikeable on another level. They look for conflict, desperate to create a narrative, always invalidating our successes, and the media have largely hopped on board with that too.

Maybe that's also partly the modern game, the constant pushing and goading, the anti city brigade who were never there during the relegation years. It was your mates down the pub, at work, in school, they'd laugh but life went on. Liverpool win and it's the greatest thing to benefit the world since two cavepeople first got their short and curlys entangled. In fact we used to get a nice pat on the head and a half loving 'see you soon lads' from some clubs.

That said, as we've not lost out in one yet maybe that's why my answer is what it is. Relegation is painful, losing out in a title race, if we've been in it until the end, isn't something we actually know about in recent history.
 
Give me ‘worrying about being champions of England’ over ‘worrying about relegation’ every single fucking season for the rest of my life
 
Struggling in the second division was torture, losing to garbage teams on regular basis was soul-destroying. In fact when we fell further my dominant thought was " Thank fuck we might win a few games". Never imagined we might stay down there, duh. Sometimes the prem/first division does not produce dramatic finishes, we've been there, sometimes impossibly traumatic endings, we've been there as well, and then some...The dread of the orgasmic gloating in the msm should the worst happen is what makes today's game so nerve-shredding, imo, but, compared to what follows relegation, the effects are short-lived. For instance, the financial hit will be modest, no enforced clear-out of players and back-room staff, no drop off in season ticket sales, sponsor income tv revenue etc. One's a bruise the others a fracture...C'mon City, boil the piss out of those classless teacher's pets from across the E.Lancs.
 
Give me the stress of winning the title every time.That day against Luton was the start of our clubs nearly 25 yr decline.We are truly blessed with what we see now.
If we cock it up today it will not have the consequences of that day against Luton.
 
We were shit, winning any game was a bonus, staying up was great, the hope next season was going to be better, and usually it wasn't

Nowadays I'm rarely nervous because on our day we can wipe the floor with any team, I'm super confident in this team

3-0 today, people will be nervous when villa are attacking, but due to the occasion rather than the quality of villa, tough game but we will coast the last 20 mins
 
Both scenarios give a different type of nervousness and stress. Getting older has helped as well. If we loose I will be getting rat arsed and listening to my favourite tunes until I pass out. Then a media blackout all week.
 
This is a hard one to call and I have been at most of the games that have been significant. At least in our darkest days we didn't have social media to add to the stress. Sky was around from about 1992 I think so it captured some iconic matches although I don't remember many households having it early days. Mobile phones were pretty bog standard then ( I'm trying to remember my first one) and live streaming I think was none existent in 1999 for the Gillingham game.

All games were equally stressful but in relegation battles we were obviously pretty shit to be in them so feared the worst anyway. The feeling of being out of the top flight was awful because of the uncertainty of getting back and we rarely made that easy in typical City fashion. Even in the Keegan title winning one I remember at some point in the season he was saying we might struggle to make the play offs. The worst was dropping down to the third tier, that was a new low and meant a minimum of two years of pain and struggle to get back to the top flight, in effect two wasted years instead of one.


Now we are competing for honours every single game is a life and death one such is the high level of competition. So every game is stressful. Drawing away at West Ham, although good after being 2-0 down was a sickener as it's placed even more stress on us today. If we had won we would have as good as won the league as we could have got beat today and technically still won the league unless Liverpool beat our superior goal difference. A point really is no advantage as we all know Liverpool will beat Wolves so it makes our final game a must win one.

In conclusion I'd say being at the top and in finals is more stressful. Why? Well when you've been great the majority of the season to be in those positions, given everything and lose, the disappointment is crushing. So near yet so far. In relegation battles you're expecting the worst for quite some time so mentally prepare for it.

I try to avoid all the build up to vital games. Don't watch sky sports and read newspapers. It's all noise and bluster and just ramps the stress levels up higher and higher. I come on here to vent and worry a bit, to try and gain some comfort, some reassurance that everything will turn out okay. Of course the truth is we are helpless. We can shout, chant, sing scream and curse but ultimately it's out of our hands. The players, lady luck, the officials and the dreaded var all hold our hopes and dreams in their hands. All we can do is pray they are kind to us and we prevail.
 
When we narrowly escaped relegation in the past the euphoria you felt was off the scale. All that angst and dread was instantly gone. A proper high. Now to the poppers thread in Off Topic.
 
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