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I never want City to be relegated, but, in football terms, I won't be too disappointed if we are this time because we'll be going back to what I think is a much more enjoyable league than the one we're in now. Having just come out of a fortnight's break which, on current evidence, has completely derailed our season, we play West Ham on Saturday and then we could easily face a month where the only game we play is one of those boring home games with a top six club where, if things run true to form, we'll surrender the points with barely a fight - it's as if we think losing by less than three goals is a satisfactory outcome when we play the top teams.
In the Championship I don't think there is one game a season where you turn up expecting us to get thrashed like I did when we played Man City and even in the matches I turn up to expect us to lose, the team have often been able to make me look like an idiot. People rave about this season's Premier League because there is actually a genuine competition this year to see who wins it, while the identity of the other two sides to play in the Champions League next season is harder to predict than normal, but, outside of the top six, what is there to justify the reputation it enjoys?
Thank you. That reply sums up just about exactly what I've been feeling. Although I wasn't watching Cardiff through the famous play-off years where we just missed it, I can imagine those seasons to be really exciting. I've really enjoyed coming back to watch Cardiff and having great fun with a lot of people but 'exciting' isn't a word I'd use to describe my experiences so far. Apart from Bournemouth.
The Championship is a much better division for me. Agreed the Prem has the best players, but everyone knows, more or less, who the top 6 will be, and the winners will come down to who spent the most money.
The championship is much more competitive, you can’t pick the top 6 at the start of the season as different clubs are in it every year (even accounting for promotion/relegation) - a team could be 4th one year, then 16th the next then win it the year after. Look at us, spent hardly anything then got promoted on effort.
If your club is capable of top 6, as we have been for most of the time we have been in it in recent years, I find it a much more interesting division.
That IS partly true, but what is the point of 'just' being a Championship team? Surely all clubs have a degree of ambition, especially with the riches on offer in the Premier League?
We have tried to stay in the top division with the most modest of adjustments to our Championship squad (by adding Championship players as well!). I'm glad that we didn't go mad like Fulham, but the club could have done a bit more.
I would certainly much prefer to play in the Premier League every week and see the best players, go to the best grounds. Who wouldn't?
The Championship can be fun, but surely everyone aspires to be the best, and the Premier League is the best.
Any end of season analysis into whether we could and should have spent more is going to be skewed by the Emiliano Sala transfer. It's a unique situation because we've paid a club record transfer fee for a striker who is not going to provide any benefit whatsoever to us when it comes to goals scored or points won. For now at least, I'm going to include the Sala transfer fee in any total I use for total transfer spend and so we're talking about something like £50 million for the period covered between January transfer windows 2018 and 2019 - that's a fair bit more than I was expecting us to spend last May when our promotion was confirmed.
Also, I made the point of saying in "football terms" when I said I wouldn't be too upset to be back in the Championship - truth is though that, without the financial benefits being in it brings, there would be very little to make me want to get promoted when we are/were in the second tier.
To be honest I'm bored with the Championship, 80% same teams, same grounds, nothing new for the 92, I'd prefer a season in League 2 where most of the new boys are. How many times can you go to Deepdale !!!!
When people think of City playing in the Championship, I think they are taking it for granted we’ll be in the top 8 .
It’s perfectly possible to go on a losing run in the championship. Our first seasons back in the championship were not mega fun and if you find yourself in the position of Ipswich or Sunderland, it must be far more demoralising than it is now.
Half full stadium (sometimes a third full), rare for an away team to fill away end, shit atmosphere, playing 10 midweek games going straight from work, midweek away games tend to be Middlesborough etc, same old teams we've played for 15 years.
Hope we stay up.
You say same old teams we’ve played for 15 years, just had a quick look at the Premier League table and there’s a few regular adversaries in our company. Brighton, Fulham, Leicester, Newcastle, Southampton, Huddersfield, Palace, Watford, Wolves, Burnley, even West Ham, won’t say Bournemouth because they’re relative latecomers to the top two divisions. Bit of a surprise really when you go through the Premier League how nearly all of us have been down & back up bar the usual suspects.
I miss the midweek games.
As for crowds, as long as I'm there with my mates I don't care who else turns up, or doesn't as the case may be.
Atmosphere? Haven't seen much atmosphere at any of the gorunds I've been to this season - including the CCS.
Just to mention Des and his 92 league grounds - I've been to 80 out of the current 92 league grounds to watch City play (some clubs I've been to a number of their grounds to watch Brighton/ Northampton/ Middlesbrough etc) . I think his comment about League 2 was tongue in cheek, but I had more enjoyment the season we narrowly avoided going out of the league than I have done this season (or the last time we were in the prem) . My football trips are about enjoying myself, not standing (or sitting) watching my team get tanked by a load of South Americans/ Africans/Europeans.
Not too tongue in cheek Harry. I'm not a fan of commercial/sterile/"modern" football & clone stadiums.
I'm on 79 of the current 92 (plus 5 no longer in league & 9 no longer used grounds). All 79 with City. I have considered doing a few of those ground with FGR but it's not quite the same! I wait for every cup draw with anticipation and end up disappointed.
My missing 13.
Cambridge, Carlisle, Crawley, Exeter, Fleetwood, Grimsby, Lincoln, Morecambe, Oldham, Rochdale, Stevenage, Tranmere & Wimbledon.
A season in league 2 would currently tick 10 of those 13 off.
Looks like I've actually got 17 missing.
Carlisle, Crawley, Exeter, Fleetwood, Grimsby, Lincoln, Morecambe, Oldham, Rochdale, Stevenage, Wimbledon, Accrington, Oxford, Walsall, FGR, Macclesfield, Cheltenham.
I've done 4 National League Grounds and 4 National League North grounds - all to watch City play. Some teams I've seen us play at two or more of their grounds.
I'd be a miilionaire if I didn't support City.