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Transpired he endured losing against Grimsby. He weathered an important continental showpiece against one of the worst Tottenham teams in living memory. He withstood losing at home against West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, an unwavering system, undermining some of the club’s best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed one adversary with whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to engage. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, similar to numerous Premiership right-back during Blackburn Rovers' championship campaign, Amorim came at Jason Wilcox and seems to have missed. The most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a manager who frequently berated at his players for losing one-on-one duels succumbing in the face of the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most feared football executives.

In truth, this entire bruising episode appears to portray the director in a different perspective. It may have been easy, given his brief stint of experience with the Saints, to regard Jason Wilcox as merely a drudge within the club's structure: a man whose appointment was due largely to his close relationship with his former boss a fellow executive as any demonstrable skill. How mistaken we all were. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the unfortunate a previous executive before him, he has proved himself to be among football's strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect of which the club's mid-table rivals are now justifiably concerned.

A Strategic Conflict Regarding Formation and Ideology

To illustrate, this was Jason Wilcox who being involved in the leadership that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim in the first place, played a key role in trying to persuade him to abandon his favored formation. Unsurprisingly, these pleas were resisted. However, such directives carry more weight when delivered from the mouth of a man the impeccable soccer background of Jason Wilcox, holder of international appearances and a role in a championship team from 31 years ago.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to outline his thought processes to the rest of us. Maybe one day questions may arise regarding why the coach is departing with a full payout, with no compensation reduction clause in place. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers of this sport – men like him – function at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive would be ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not quite equivalent to being prepared to receive.

An Supreme Authority In the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on the sporting director we overlook the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has made very clear his desire for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also proposed playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for the club to adopt analytics and metrics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit early in his investment, he declared that the team's approach to football “shall be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is an expert in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his previous experience in petrochemicals and sailing. Most importantly he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the rich are superior: more insightful, sagacious, strategically brilliant, simply superior. Who else could one trust to oversee a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the building of a modern arena that looks similar to someone’s leftover knitting, the signing of a new striker?

A New Football Hierarchy: Directors Over Coaches

This is a trend we are increasingly seeing in top-tier football. Historically, clubs foolishly delegated big footballing decisions to subordinate staff like managers, talent spotters – players themselves. Perhaps it was once possible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and drive to go into an organization and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many companies have such individuals established? How many large-scale layoffs have they managed? Better by far to place the real power where it belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the guys with impressive LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to decide the tactics in the boardroom and appoint someone who will adapt their offering to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they have become more akin to delivery personnel: not creating the product, but still finally accountable if it arrives cold or leaks out to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the visible figurehead for a club they can do little to change. A coach at Chelsea leads a team of very young players into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for talking. Wilfried Nancy finds his standing damaged whereas those individuals who hired him continue to make errors another day.

The Neoliberal Football: Accountability for the Coaches

And perhaps in a small way this is simply neoliberalism at work: the elevation of a gilded overclass who are infallible, whose choices remain sacrosanct, whose errors can invariably be sacked away without justification. Hire the system coach only to dismiss them for playing too much 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and later bin them for taking excessive time. And above all show gratitude; for your modest season ticket price rises, for your new player acquisitions, for the fact that the grownups – however well qualified – remain in control.