Once again, Blues face a last-day-of-season relegation struggle, but this time in hard mode, starting from the bottom three.
A draw with Huddersfield effectively consigned the Terriers to relegation, but even a win next weekend may not be enough for the Blues if the results do not go their way.
While the climate on social media reached toxic levels weeks ago, there were allegations from Yorkshire that it had spread to the stands, with scraps between fans voicing their dissatisfaction with the performance.
It’s difficult for me to comment because I spent Saturday on family duty in Birmingham, but based on what I’ve heard from numerous folks who were there, it appears that we’ve reached a new low in toxicity.
It implies Saturday afternoon is set up for something; another awful performance, and I’m afraid we’ll see poison in the ground like we haven’t seen since the BSH days.
Despite this, there is still hope that the hotel I’ve booked in Birmingham for next weekend may be the setting for yet another miracle escape.
The Permutations
With only one game remaining on the schedule, the possible outcomes for the Blues are considerably clearer.
If the Blues lose to Norwich, they will be relegated, regardless of what happens elsewhere.
If the Blues draw with Norwich, they will be relegated provided Plymouth does not lose at home to Hull City by five clear goals or more.
This means that in order to have a genuine chance of survival, the Blues must win.
If Blues win, a Plymouth victory, along with Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers avoiding defeat, will relegate Blues.
Blues’ better goal difference ensures that a win combined with a defeat for either Sheffield Wednesday or Blackburn will keep Blues safe.
The Blues host a Norwich team that has (barring a couple of bizarre results) advanced to the playoffs, while Plymouth hosts a Hull team that must win if they are to have any chance of finishing in the top six.
Sheffield Wednesday take on Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, who have nothing to play for, while Blackburn Rovers travel to the King Power Stadium to face Championship winners Leicester, who will collect the trophy at the end of their game.
All of this means that Saturday is truly do or die – and, while Gary Rowett’s side has performed admirably in front of sell-out crowds at St Andrew’s, the Blues have not beaten Norwich at home since August 2016.
Gary Rowett’s Blues won 3-0 thanks to a goal from David Davis and a brace from Clayton Donaldson, including a penalty.
Blues have only earned a point in their last four home meetings against Norwich, surrendering nine goals and scoring four.
It’s easy to see why the Blues are suddenly odds-on favourites to lose with all of the bookmakers.
The Blame Game
With Blues appearing increasingly certain to be relegated at the conclusion of the season, fingers of blame are once again being pointed at various club officials on social media.
It’s a topic I’ve discussed on this site before, and as much as I dislike it, I understand why there are so many charges being thrown around right now.
I understand Blues fans’ irritation that this season should have been better because of all the positive things going on off the pitch, and the fact that it hasn’t means someone has to be held accountable.
However, as a pragmatic, I know in my heart that, as therapeutic as blaming others is, it ultimately contributes nothing.
What is more important right now is that the team learns from its mistakes this year and does all possible to avoid repeating them the following season.
At the Open House, Tom Wagner responded to my question regarding the most important lesson learned this year, which was to not break forward momentum.
I took his response to mean that he realizes that they fired Eustace at the wrong time, when the team was winning and momentum was on our side.
I don’t disagree with that, but I believe there is a deeper lesson to be taught.
When Wagner and co. entered the stadium for the first time, they realized how broken the club was and how much work needed to be done to fix it.
Despite our promising start to the season, I believe the club was as broken on the pitch as it was off it.
Years of underinvestment by BSH, combined with some genuinely horrible contract negotiations by former CEO Ren Xuandong, resulted in an imbalanced squad stacked with players on inflated contracts, severely limiting spending.
This season should have been one of consolidation on the pitch, much as it has been off the pitch in terms of improving infrastructure.
As monotonous as it would have been, a mid-table result would have been superior than every year since 2015-16 and provided Blues with a foundation on which to grow.
Relegation presents a number of new challenges.
For starters, falling behind this season will put immediate pressure on the club to recover at the earliest possible chance.
Even with a lot of money and more relaxed financial fair play laws, the Blues will face the difficult task of recruiting players who will not only get them out of the division soon, but will also be able to move up to a good level in the Championship.
Commercial and broadcast revenues will also fall, putting significant additional pressure on the commercial side of the firm to maintain growing revenues.
This will put a lot of pressure on people like Garry Cook, Craig Gardner, and their various squads to provide immediate results – and not only from fans.
This coming week is not going to be pleasant.
There is undoubtedly going to be some piss-taking from other fans, and there is going to be some toxicity and anger online from those who cannot hold in their vitriol at the situation the club finds it in.
There will also be that stubborn hope that maybe, just maybe we’ll see the next addition to the last day escapes from down the years with the possibility of another iconic moment like Paul Caddis’s goal up at Bolton.
As Saturday nears it’s going to be tense and it’s going to be stressful.
All we can do really, is what the anthem says – keep right on.
