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Itranspired he could survive defeat by Grimsby. He weathered losing a crucial European final against a particularly poor Spurs sides in living memory. He could survive home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to some of the club’s best homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the worst the club has ever seen. But there was one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, similar to numerous Premiership defender during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning campaign, the coach took on the executive and seems to have failed. The most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a manager who often railed his squad for losing individual battles crumbling when confronted by the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of the Premier League’s most feared sporting directors.

In truth, this whole bruising episode appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been tempting, based on his brief stint of experience with the Saints, to view him as little more than 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 verifiable talent. How wrong we all were. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive earlier, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated as one of football's true generals: a strategic mind of which the club's competitors will now be rightly wary.

A Strategic Clash Regarding System & Philosophy

For example, this was Jason Wilcox , after having been part of the leadership that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim originally, was instrumental in attempting to convince him to ditch his beloved formation. Naturally, these pleas met a certain resistance. However, these judgements hold greater authority when issued by a man with the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, holder of three England caps and a contributor to a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is departing with a full payout, without any compensation reduction clause in place. The director speaks rarely in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – men like Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely we would perceive is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not the same as being ready to comprehend it.

An Ultimate Authority Behind Command

Naturally, by focusing our attention 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 superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has emphasized his preference for a back four. It is reported, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for the club to embrace data science and analytics. Per reports, in an executive meeting soon after his minority ownership, he announced that United’s style of play “shall be decided in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is a specialist in these intricate football matters, drawing from his previous experience in industry and yachting. Above all he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, more tactically astute, simply better. Who else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of austerity, the building of a new stadium that appears a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

A Modern Soccer Hierarchy: Directors Over Managers

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels football. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated major sporting choices to low-level employees like managers, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for an up-and-coming, visionary coach with ideas and drive to go into a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many businesses have such individuals set up? How many large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Better by far to place the real power where it belongs: the executive class, the casually dressed executives, the guys with impressive LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to determine the strategy in the boardroom and appoint someone who can tailor their offering to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they have become more like Deliveroo drivers: not really creating the food, but still finally accountable should it be delivered poorly or fails of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about defining the vision and more about selling it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the visible figurehead of an organisation they can do little to influence. A coach at Chelsea leads a team of very young players into Europe and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for speaking out. A manager at Celtic finds his standing damaged whereas the people who hired him live to blunder indefinitely.

A Modern Corporate Football: Accountability Only for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this represents neoliberalism at work: the rise of a gilded elite who are infallible, whose choices remain sacrosanct, whose errors can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Appoint the system coach only to dismiss them for using too much 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and later bin them for taking excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for your modest increases in ticket costs, for your new summer signings, for the fact that the adults – however well qualified – remain in control.