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Transpired he could survive losing against lower-league opposition. He weathered a decisive continental showpiece against a particularly poor Spurs sides for many years. He could survive home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, his rigid approach, undermining the team's best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed a single opponent against whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to dance. You come at the sporting director, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, like many a top-flight defender during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning campaign, Amorim came at the executive and seems to have failed. The most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a manager who frequently berated at his players for failing in individual battles succumbing when confronted by the intense pressure and animal charisma of a England's top division's most intimidating sporting directors.

In truth, this whole painful saga seems to paint the director in a different perspective. It may have been easy, based on his brief stint in a similar role at Southampton, to view him as merely a functionary within the club's structure: a man who owed his position as much to his friendship with his former boss Omar Berrada rather than any verifiable talent. How mistaken we all were. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive before him, Jason Wilcox has proved himself as one of the sport’s true generals: a tactical intellect of which United’s competitors will now be justifiably concerned.

A Strategic Clash Regarding System and Ideology

For example, it was Jason Wilcox , after being involved in the leadership that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim in the first place, played a key role in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his favored 3-4-3. Unsurprisingly, these pleas faced pushback. However, these judgements hold greater authority when issued from the mouth with the unimpeachable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, a veteran of international appearances and a role in a championship team decades past.

Perhaps in time he might agree to outline his reasoning to the rest of us. Maybe one day he might be asked regarding why the coach is walking away with a full payout, with no penalty clause in place. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – men like him – simply operate on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, probably all we would hear is a series of high-frequency signals and complex calculations. Wanting is not quite the same as being ready to comprehend it.

The Ultimate Authority In 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 directives of his ultimate line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has emphasized his preference for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt data science and metrics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit early in his minority ownership, he announced that the team's approach of play “will be decided in this room”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate football matters, leveraging his background in industry and sailing. Above all he remains incredibly rich, and it is known, the wealthy are superior: more perceptive, more wise, more tactically astute, simply superior. Whom else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of austerity, the construction of a modern arena that appears a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

The New Soccer Order: Executives 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 such as coaches, scouts – players themselves. Maybe previously possible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with ideas and drive to join a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many companies have these guys established? What number of large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Far preferable to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with the jaw-dropping LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to decide the tactics in the boardroom and hire someone who can tailor their methods accordingly. If managers were formerly chefs, they have become more like delivery personnel: not really creating the product, yet finally accountable should it be delivered poorly or fails of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly not about defining the vision and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the visible figurehead for a club they have minimal power to change. A coach at Chelsea takes a squad of literal children into Europe and secures two medium-sized trophies, and effectively gets sacked for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his standing damaged whereas the people who appointed him continue to make errors 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 can never be wrong, whose choices remain untouchable, whose mistakes can invariably be resolved by sacking without explanation. Appoint the system coach only to fire him for playing too much 3-4-3. Hire the process guy and later discard him for taking too long. And most importantly show gratitude; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for your new summer signings, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.