Pep Guardiola staying at Manchester City may have caused more frustration in the boardrooms of Premier League clubs this week than the pending vote over Associated Party Transactions.

As the squabble continues over financial rules, the build-up of pressure and animosity between leading clubs has been exacerbated by the feeling that Guardiola is a human cheat code who City use time and time again to make sure nobody else ever wins. All anyone can do is wait for the day that the manager leaves, and now that will stretch on even longer.

The charges looming over City that could yet taint their rise will not have been prominent in Guardiola's decision to stay or leave at the end of the season, and the decision would not have influenced the hearing even if it wasn't almost over already. However, his choice to stay has to be seen as significant in a situation where rivals are searching for any kind of weakness from the Etihad.

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Whether in hope or paranoia, some have convinced themselves that anyone who has left City must be doing so because the club are guilty of the serious allegations that they face and vehemently deny. From COO Omar Berrada to first-team kit man Brandon Ashton, every departure since February 2023 has been heralded by some lunatics as proof that the Blues are in the wrong.

Guardiola's lack of renewal this season was also put in this bracket, as a sign that the best manager in the world would never really go down to League One with Mike Summerbee and Paul Dickov whatever he said. If the worst does come true for City, Guardiola may not actually be up for that - but his renewal backs up every supportive word he has said so far as he continues to place his trust in those who have given him everything he wants at the Etihad.

As clubs and conspiracy theorists alike push for what they believe to be a level playing field in the Premier League, Guardiola's new deal is a reminder that there are some advantages they simple cannot control however much regulation there is in the top flight.