Tate was a rock in defence as they became the first Welsh club to reach the Premier League via a nail-biting play-off victory over Reading at Wembley in May, the climax of a remarkable eight years in the history of a proud club that not so long ago was sold for a solitary pound.
Even their kit sponsor, a firm of online bookmakers, have the Swans down as relegation favourites and the opening few weeks could reveal much about the club's readiness for top-flight football for the first time since 1983.
"No doubt, the Hull game was the most vital game in the club's history, without that win nothing else exists," former Manchester United trainee Tate told Reuters at Swansea's training ground just off the M4 motorway in the Welsh hills.
"Everything was on the line that day. If we had lost there would have been no promotions, no playoff final. It's impossible to over-state the consequences of losing that day to Hull. We would never have come back from that.
"That's why for me I can enjoy going to City on Monday. For the last eight years we have gone out to win every game we play and that will be exactly the same at City."
He believes Swansea can go one better than Blackpool last season and survive playing "easy on the eye" football, whoever the opposition are.
"Yeah, it's a nice easy opener isn't it?" Monk told Reuters looking ahead to Monday's clash at City. "They've spent millions on world-class players but there is no sense of trepidation.
"It's a bit of a step into the unknown but if we go into playing scared football we'll be in a bit of trouble.
