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
 
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.
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.
 
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?
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
 

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