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Itbecame clear Ruben Amorim could survive defeat by lower-league opposition. Survive an important European final versus one of the worst Tottenham teams for many years. He withstood losing at home to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, his rigid approach, undermining some of the club’s most promising homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling his team the worst in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed one adversary against whom Ruben Amorim would not be allowed to tango. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, similar to numerous top-flight defender during Blackburn Rovers' championship campaign, the coach came at Jason Wilcox and appears to have failed. Even the most casual observer will notice the paradoxical situation: a coach who often railed his squad for failing in one-on-one duels succumbing when confronted by the intense pressure and animal charisma of a 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. It may have been easy, based on his nine months in a similar role with the Saints, to view him as merely a functionary within the club's structure: an individual whose appointment was due as much to his close relationship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada as any verifiable talent. How mistaken everyone was. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring United’s feted head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, he has demonstrated as one of football's strategic masterminds: a strategic mind of which the club's mid-table rivals will now be justifiably concerned.

The Tactical Clash Over System and Ideology

To illustrate, this was Jason Wilcox , after having been part of the hierarchy that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach in the first place, played a key role in trying to persuade Amorim to ditch his beloved formation. Naturally, these pleas faced pushback. But perhaps these judgements hold greater authority when delivered by a man with the unimpeachable soccer background of Jason Wilcox, a veteran of three England caps and a role in a championship team decades past.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox might agree to outline his reasoning to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point he might be asked regarding why the coach is walking away with full compensation, without any penalty clause in place. The director seldom speaks in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers of this sport – individuals such as him – function on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive would be high-frequency signals and complex calculations. Wanting is not equivalent to being prepared to receive.

The Ultimate Power Behind the Throne

But of course, by focusing our attention on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, in reality, merely executing the commands of his ultimate superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has emphasized his desire for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also proposed deploying the forward as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for the club to adopt data science and metrics. Per reports, in an executive meeting early in his minority ownership, he declared that United’s style to football “will be decided by this group”.

After all, Ratcliffe is an expert in these intricate football matters, drawing from his previous experience in petrochemicals and yachting. Most importantly he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, strategically brilliant, fundamentally better. Who else could one trust to manage an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the construction of a new stadium that looks a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

A Modern Soccer Order: Executives Over Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels of the game. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to low-level employees such as coaches, talent spotters – players themselves. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, visionary coach with a philosophy and energy to join an organization and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many businesses have such individuals set up? How many mass redundancies have they overseen? Far preferable to invest the real power where it belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the guys with impressive LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to decide the tactics in the boardroom and hire someone who can tailor their offering accordingly. If coaches were once chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not creating the food, yet finally accountable should it be delivered cold or leaks out to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about defining the vision and more about selling it: the receptionist of the operation, the public face of an organisation they have minimal power to influence. Enzo Maresca leads a team of literal children into the Champions League and secures domestic cups, and essentially gets sacked for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his standing damaged whereas those individuals who hired him continue to make errors indefinitely.

The Modern Corporate Game: Responsibility Only for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this is simply neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a gilded overclass who can never be wrong, whose decisions remain sacrosanct, whose mistakes can always be sacked away without explanation. Appoint the system coach and then fire them for using too much that system. Hire the process guy and then bin them for requiring too long. And above all be grateful; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for your new summer signings, for the fact that the adults – however well qualified – remain in control.