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Iturns out Ruben Amorim could survive defeat by Grimsby. He weathered an important 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, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to some of the club’s most promising homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling his team the poorest the club has ever seen. But there was a single opponent against whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to engage. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, similar to numerous top-flight right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning campaign, the coach came at the executive and seems to have failed. Even the most casual observer will notice the paradoxical situation: a manager who often railed at his players for losing individual battles crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of a the Premier League’s most feared football executives.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been easy, given his brief stint of experience with the Saints, to view him as merely a drudge in the United exoskeleton: an individual who owed his position as much to his friendship with ex-colleague a fellow executive as any demonstrable skill. How wrong everyone was. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive before him, he has proved himself as one of football's true generals: a tactical intellect of which United’s mid-table rivals will now be rightly wary.

A Tactical Clash Regarding Formation and Philosophy

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 trying to persuade him to ditch his beloved 3-4-3. Naturally, these pleas met a certain resistance. But perhaps these judgements hold greater authority when issued by a man with the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, holder of three England caps and a role in a championship team from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox might agree to outline his thought processes publicly. Maybe one day he might be asked why Amorim is departing with full compensation, with no penalty clause activated. The director seldom speaks in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – function at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive is a series of ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not quite the same as being prepared to comprehend it.

An Supreme Power In the Throne

Naturally, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, in reality, merely executing the commands of his ultimate superior the billionaire owner, who in private has made very clear his desire for a back four. According to reports, Ratcliffe has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. The owner is eager for United to adopt data science and metrics. Per reports, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, he declared that United’s style to football “shall be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate football matters, leveraging his previous experience in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more insightful, more wise, more tactically astute, fundamentally better. Who else would you trust to manage an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the construction of a new stadium that appears similar to an abstract design, the signing of Benjamin Sesko?

A Modern Football Hierarchy: Executives Above Coaches

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated major sporting choices to low-level employees such as coaches, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, innovative manager with a philosophy and energy to join an organization and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many companies have such individuals established? How many large-scale layoffs have they managed? Better by far to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the executive class, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. It is wiser to decide the strategy by the directors and appoint a coach who will adapt their offering accordingly. If managers were once chefs, they are now more akin to Deliveroo drivers: not really responsible for the food, but still ultimately answerable should it be delivered poorly or leaks out of the box.

Nowadays, their job has become less about defining the vision and more about selling it: the receptionist on the front desk, the public face for a club they can do little to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially is dismissed for talking. Wilfried Nancy finds his standing damaged while those individuals who hired him live to blunder another day.

A Neoliberal Football: Responsibility for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this represents neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a gilded overclass who can never be wrong, whose choices remain untouchable, whose errors can always be resolved by sacking without explanation. Hire the system coach only to dismiss him for using too much that system. Bring in the project manager and later discard them for taking too long. And most importantly show gratitude; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for the latest player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.