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Iturns out he endured defeat by Grimsby. He weathered a decisive European final against one of the worst Spurs sides in living memory. He withstood home defeats to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, the tactical inflexibility, undermining the team's best academy products, the 32% win rate, calling his team the poorest in Manchester United history. But there was one adversary against whom Ruben Amorim would not be allowed to tango. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Unfortunately, like many a Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s championship 1994-95 season, the coach took on Jason Wilcox and seems to have failed. Even the most distracted of readers will notice the irony here: a coach who often railed at his players for losing 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 appears to portray the director in a whole new light. Perhaps it might have been tempting, based on his nine months in a similar role with the Saints, to regard Jason Wilcox as little more than a functionary in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position as much to his close relationship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada as any demonstrable skill. How wrong everyone was. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring United’s feted manager, just as he bested the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, he has proved himself as one of the sport’s true generals: a strategic mind that United’s mid-table rivals will now be rightly wary.

A Tactical Conflict Over Formation and Philosophy

To illustrate, it was Jason Wilcox who being involved in the leadership that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach originally, was instrumental in attempting to convince him to abandon his favored formation. Naturally, these entreaties were resisted. But perhaps such directives carry more weight when issued by a man of a man the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, holder of international appearances 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 why Amorim is walking away with full compensation, without any penalty clause in place. The director seldom speaks in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers of this sport – individuals such as him – simply operate at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, most likely all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Desiring an explanation is not quite equivalent to being prepared to comprehend it.

The Supreme Authority Behind the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on Jason Wilcox we overlook the real power behind the club's current leadership. The director is, after all, simply carrying out the commands of his superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has made very clear his desire for a four-man defense. It is reported, the owner has also proposed playing Bryan Mbeumo in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for United to adopt data science and analytics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit soon after his investment, he announced that the team's approach to football “shall be determined in this room”.

After all, Sir Jim is a specialist in this technical footballing stuff, drawing from his background in industry and yachting. Most importantly he remains incredibly rich, and it is known, the rich are superior: more perceptive, sagacious, more tactically astute, simply better. Whom else would you trust to manage an enlightened programme of austerity, the building of a new stadium that looks a lot like an abstract design, the signing of a new striker?

A Modern Soccer Order: Executives Over Managers

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, clubs foolishly delegated big footballing decisions to subordinate staff like managers, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, visionary coach with a philosophy and drive to go into a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many companies have these guys established? How many mass redundancies have they managed? Far preferable to place genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the executive class, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with the jaw-dropping LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to determine the tactics by the directors and appoint someone who will adapt their methods to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they are now more akin to Deliveroo drivers: not really responsible for the food, but still finally accountable if it arrives cold or leaks out to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist of the operation, the visible figurehead for a club they have minimal power to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into Europe and secures two medium-sized trophies, and effectively gets sacked for talking. Wilfried Nancy sees his reputation ruined while those individuals who hired him live to blunder indefinitely.

The Modern Corporate Game: Accountability for the Few

And perhaps in a small way this represents neoliberalism at work: the rise of a privileged elite who are infallible, whose decisions are always untouchable, whose errors can always be resolved by sacking without justification. Hire the 3-4-3 coach only to fire them for playing excessively 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and then bin them for taking excessive time. And above all show gratitude; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for your new summer signings, for the reality that the grownups – however well qualified – remain in control.