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Turns out Ruben Amorim endured a loss to lower-league opposition. Survive an important continental showpiece against one of the worst Tottenham teams for many years. He withstood home defeats to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, an unwavering system, laying waste to the team's most promising academy products, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. Yet, there existed one adversary against whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to engage. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, like many a Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning campaign, Amorim came at Jason Wilcox and appears to have failed. The most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a coach who frequently berated his squad for failing in individual battles crumbling when confronted by the white heat and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most feared sporting directors.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been tempting, given his nine months of experience at Southampton, to regard Jason Wilcox as little more than a functionary in the United exoskeleton: an individual who owed his position largely to his close relationship with his former boss a fellow executive rather than any verifiable talent. How wrong we all were. In brilliantly outsmarting the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless a previous executive earlier, Jason Wilcox has proved himself to be among football's strategic masterminds: a strategic mind of which United’s mid-table rivals are now justifiably concerned.

A Tactical Clash Regarding System & Ideology

For example, it was the director , after having been part of the leadership that hired the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his beloved formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties faced pushback. However, such directives hold greater authority when delivered by a man with the unimpeachable football pedigree he possesses, a veteran 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 reasoning to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point he might be asked why Amorim is walking away with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause activated. The director seldom speaks publicly, and with very good reason. The true intellectuals of this sport – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane exceeding our mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, probably all we would hear would be ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not equivalent to being prepared to comprehend it.

The Supreme Power In Command

Naturally, in training our focus on Jason Wilcox we overlook the true genius behind the club's current leadership. The director is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his superior the billionaire owner, who privately has emphasized his preference for a four-man defense. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also suggested deploying the forward as a right wing-back. The owner is eager for United to adopt analytics and metrics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit early in his minority ownership, he announced that the team's approach of play “shall be decided by this group”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate football matters, drawing from his background in petrochemicals and sailing. Most importantly he remains incredibly rich, and it is known, the wealthy are superior: more insightful, sagacious, more tactically astute, fundamentally superior. Who else could one trust to manage an enlightened programme of austerity, the building of a modern arena that looks similar to an abstract design, the signing of a new striker?

The New Football Order: Directors Over Coaches

This is a trend we are increasingly seeing in top-tier football. Historically, teams mistakenly entrusted major sporting choices to low-level employees like managers, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for a young, visionary coach with ideas and drive to go into an organization and see their vision supported to fruition. Yet how many businesses have these guys set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Better by far to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the guys with impressive LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to determine the strategy by the directors and appoint a coach who can tailor their offering to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they are now more like delivery personnel: not really responsible for the product, yet ultimately answerable if it arrives cold or fails to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist on the front desk, the public face for a club they have minimal power to influence. A coach at Chelsea leads a team of very young players into Europe and wins two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for talking. A manager at Celtic sees his reputation ruined while those individuals who hired him continue to make errors indefinitely.

The Neoliberal Game: Responsibility for the Few

And perhaps in a small way this represents corporate governance at work: the elevation of a gilded elite who can never be wrong, whose choices are always untouchable, whose mistakes can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Appoint the system coach only to dismiss them for using excessively that system. Hire the project manager and then discard him for taking too long. And above all be grateful; for your modest increases in ticket costs, for the latest summer signings, for the fact that the adults – however well qualified – are in charge.