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Iturns out the manager could survive losing against lower-league opposition. Survive an important European final versus a particularly poor Tottenham teams in living memory. He could survive home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, a lowly league position, his rigid approach, undermining some of the club’s best homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, labeling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. But there was one adversary with whom Ruben Amorim would not be allowed to dance. You come at the sporting director, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, like many a top-flight right-back during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning 1994-95 season, the coach came at Jason Wilcox and seems to have failed. The most distracted of readers will notice the paradoxical situation: a coach who frequently berated his squad for failing in one-on-one duels crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of one of the Premier League’s most feared sporting directors.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode appears to portray the director in a whole new light. Perhaps it might have been easy, based on his brief stint of experience at Southampton, to view Jason Wilcox as merely a drudge in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position as much to his close relationship with his former boss Omar Berrada as any demonstrable skill. How wrong everyone was. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring United’s feted head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the unfortunate Dan Ashworth earlier, Jason Wilcox has proved himself as one of football's strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect that the club's mid-table rivals will now be rightly wary.

A Tactical Clash Over System and Ideology

For example, it was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the leadership that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim originally, played a key role in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his favored formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. But perhaps such directives hold greater authority when issued by a man of a man the unimpeachable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, holder of international appearances and a contributor to a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to outline his reasoning to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is departing with a full payout, with no penalty clause in place. The director speaks rarely publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers of this sport – men like Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane exceeding our prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely all we would hear would be ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Wanting is not the same as being prepared to receive.

The Ultimate Authority Behind Command

But of course, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the club's current leadership. The director is, in reality, simply carrying out the commands of his superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has made very clear his preference for a four-man defense. It is reported, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for the club to adopt data science and analytics. Per reports, in an executive meeting soon after his minority ownership, he announced that the team's approach of play “shall be decided by this group”.

After all, Sir Jim is an expert in these intricate footballing stuff, drawing from his background in industry and sailing. Above all he is incredibly rich, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, more tactically astute, simply better. Who else could one trust to oversee a strategic plan of austerity, the construction of a modern arena that appears a lot like an abstract design, the signing of a new striker?

A Modern Football Hierarchy: Executives Over Managers

This represents a shift we are increasingly seeing at the elite levels of the game. Historically, teams mistakenly entrusted big footballing decisions to low-level employees such as coaches, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and energy to join an organization and see their vision through to completion. Yet how many companies have these guys set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they managed? Better by far to invest the real power where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with impressive LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to determine the tactics by the directors and appoint a coach who can tailor their methods accordingly. If coaches were once chefs, they have become more like Deliveroo drivers: not really creating the food, yet ultimately answerable should it be delivered cold or leaks out of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly not about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the public face for a club they have minimal power to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and effectively is dismissed for talking. A manager at Celtic finds his reputation ruined whereas those individuals who appointed him live to blunder another day.

The Modern Corporate Football: Accountability Only for the Coaches

And possibly in a small way this represents neoliberalism at work: the rise of a privileged elite who are infallible, whose decisions remain untouchable, whose errors can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach only to dismiss them for using excessively 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and later discard him for taking excessive time. And above all show gratitude; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for the latest player acquisitions, for the reality that the grownups – however well qualified – are in charge.