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Iturns out Ruben Amorim endured defeat by lower-league opposition. Survive losing a crucial continental showpiece against one of the worst Tottenham teams in living memory. He could survive losing at home to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, an unwavering system, laying waste to some of the club’s most promising academy products, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. But there was a single opponent against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, like many a Premiership right-back during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning 1994-95 season, Amorim came at Jason Wilcox and appears to have missed. Even the most distracted of readers will notice the irony here: a coach who often railed at his players for losing one-on-one duels succumbing when confronted by 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 Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. Perhaps it might have been easy, based on his nine months of experience with the Saints, to view Jason Wilcox as little more than a functionary 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 manager, just as he bested the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated to be among football's true generals: a tactical intellect of which the club's mid-table rivals are now rightly wary.

A Tactical Clash Regarding Formation and Philosophy

To illustrate, this was Jason Wilcox who being involved in the leadership that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist the coach in the first place, played a key role in attempting to convince him to ditch his beloved 3-4-3. Naturally, these entreaties were resisted. However, these judgements carry more weight when issued by a man of a man the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, holder of three England caps and a contributor to a title-winning side decades past.

Maybe eventually he might agree to explain his reasoning publicly. Perhaps at some point he might be asked regarding why the coach is departing with a full payout, without any penalty clause activated. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. Were he to speak, probably all we would hear is a series of high-frequency signals and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not quite the same as being ready to comprehend it.

An Supreme 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, in reality, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager the billionaire owner, who in private has emphasized his preference for a four-man defense. It is reported, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt data science and metrics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, he announced that United’s style to football “shall be determined in this room”.

After all, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his background in industry and sailing. Above all he remains immensely wealthy, and as we all know, the rich are the best of us: more insightful, more wise, more tactically astute, simply better. Who else could one trust to manage a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the construction of a new stadium that looks similar to someone’s leftover knitting, the signing of Benjamin Sesko?

The Modern Football Hierarchy: Directors Over Coaches

This is a trend we are increasingly seeing at the elite levels football. For decades, teams mistakenly entrusted major sporting choices to low-level employees such as coaches, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for an up-and-coming, visionary coach with a philosophy and drive to go into an organization and see their vision supported to fruition. But how many businesses have such individuals established? How many mass redundancies have they overseen? Far preferable to invest genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the executive class, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with impressive LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to decide the strategy in the boardroom and hire a coach who will adapt their methods to suit. If managers were once chefs, they are now more like delivery personnel: not responsible for the product, but still 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 marketing 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 the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for talking. A manager at Celtic finds his standing damaged whereas the people who appointed him continue to make errors another day.

A Neoliberal Game: Accountability Only for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this represents corporate governance at work: the rise of a privileged overclass who are infallible, whose choices remain untouchable, whose mistakes can always be sacked away without justification. Appoint the system coach and then fire them for using too much 3-4-3. Bring in the process guy and then discard them for taking too long. And most importantly be grateful; for your modest season ticket price rises, for the latest player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.