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Iturns out Ruben Amorim endured defeat by Grimsby. He weathered losing a crucial continental showpiece versus one of the worst Spurs sides for many years. He withstood losing at home against West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, an unwavering system, squandering some of the club’s most promising homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, labeling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. But there was one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, like many a top-flight right-back during Blackburn Rovers' championship campaign, the coach came at Jason Wilcox and seems to have failed. The most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a coach who frequently berated at his players for failing in individual battles crumbling in the face of the white heat and animal charisma of a the Premier League’s most feared football executives.

In truth, this whole painful saga appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been easy, based on his nine months of experience with the Saints, to regard him as merely a drudge in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position largely to his close relationship with his former boss Omar Berrada as any demonstrable skill. How mistaken we all were. By masterfully outsmarting the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated as one of football's true generals: a tactical intellect that the club's competitors are now justifiably concerned.

The Strategic Clash Regarding System and Philosophy

To illustrate, this was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the leadership that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in trying to persuade him to ditch his favored 3-4-3. Naturally, these entreaties were resisted. However, these judgements hold greater authority when issued by a man of a man the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, holder of international appearances and a contributor to a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point he might be asked regarding why the coach is walking away with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause activated. The director speaks rarely in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers of this sport – men like Jason Wilcox – simply operate at a level exceeding our prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely all we would hear is a series of high-frequency signals and four-dimensional whirring. Desiring an explanation is not equivalent to being ready to comprehend it.

An Supreme Authority In the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. Jason Wilcox is, after all, merely executing the commands of his ultimate line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has made very clear his preference for a back four. According to reports, Ratcliffe has also proposed playing Bryan Mbeumo in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt data science and analytics. Per reports, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, he declared that United’s style of play “will be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is an expert in this technical footballing stuff, drawing from his previous experience in industry and sailing. Most importantly he is incredibly rich, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more insightful, sagacious, more tactically astute, fundamentally better. Whom else would you trust to oversee a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the construction of a modern arena that looks similar to an abstract design, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

A Modern Soccer Order: Executives Over Coaches

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels of the game. Historically, clubs foolishly entrusted major sporting choices to subordinate staff such as coaches, scouts – even footballers. Maybe previously possible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and energy to join an organization and implement their plan through to completion. Yet how many businesses have these guys established? What number of mass redundancies have they overseen? Far preferable to place genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with impressive professional resumes. Better by far to determine the strategy in the boardroom and hire someone who will adapt their offering accordingly. If coaches were formerly chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not responsible for the food, yet finally accountable if it arrives cold or leaks out to meet standards.

Nowadays, their job has become less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist of the operation, the visible figurehead for a club they can do little to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into the Champions League and wins domestic cups, and effectively is dismissed for speaking out. A manager at Celtic finds his reputation ruined whereas the people who hired him live to blunder another day.

The Modern Corporate Football: Responsibility for the Coaches

And perhaps in a small way this represents neoliberalism at work: the elevation of a privileged elite who can never be wrong, whose choices remain sacrosanct, whose mistakes can always be resolved by sacking without explanation. Appoint the system coach only to dismiss them for playing excessively 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and then discard them for requiring excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for the latest summer signings, for the fact that the grownups – however well qualified – are in charge.