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Transpired the manager was able to withstand a loss to Grimsby. Survive an important continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Spurs sides for many years. He withstood home defeats to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, the tactical inflexibility, squandering some of the club’s best homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, labeling the squad the worst the club has ever seen. Yet, there existed one adversary with whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to engage. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, like many a Premiership defender during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning campaign, the coach took on the executive and appears to have failed. Even the most casual observer will notice the irony here: a manager who often railed his squad for failing in individual battles 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 painful saga appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. It may have been easy, based on his nine months of experience with the Saints, to view him as merely a functionary in the United exoskeleton: an individual whose appointment was due as much to his close relationship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada rather than any demonstrable skill. How wrong we all were. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring United’s feted head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated to be among football's true generals: a strategic mind of which United’s competitors are now rightly wary.

The Strategic Clash Regarding System and Ideology

To illustrate, it was the director , after being involved in the leadership that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach in the first place, was instrumental in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his favored formation. Naturally, these entreaties faced pushback. However, these judgements hold greater authority when issued by a man of a man the impeccable soccer background he possesses, holder of international appearances and a role in a championship team from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox might agree to outline his thought processes to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point he might be asked regarding why the coach is departing with a full payout, with no penalty clause in place. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – men like Jason Wilcox – simply operate at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, most likely all we would hear would be ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Wanting is not the same as being prepared to receive.

The Ultimate Power Behind the Throne

Naturally, by focusing our attention on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has made very clear his preference for a four-man defense. According to reports, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for the club to adopt data science and analytics. According to ESPN, in an executive meeting soon after his minority ownership, he announced that the team's approach to football “will be decided in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is an expert in this technical footballing stuff, drawing from his background in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the wealthy are the best of us: more perceptive, more wise, more tactically astute, fundamentally better. Who else would you trust to manage an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the building of a modern arena that looks similar to an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

A New Football Order: Directors Over Coaches

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, teams mistakenly entrusted major sporting choices to low-level employees like managers, talent spotters – players themselves. Perhaps it was once possible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and drive to go into an organization and see their vision through to completion. Yet how many companies have these guys set up? How many mass redundancies have they managed? Far preferable to place the real power where it belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. Better by far to determine the strategy by the directors and hire a coach who can tailor their methods accordingly. If managers were once chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not creating the product, but still finally accountable should it be delivered cold or leaks out to meet standards.

Nowadays, a coach's role is increasingly not about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the public face of an organisation 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 gets sacked for speaking out. Wilfried Nancy finds his standing damaged whereas those individuals who hired him live to blunder another day.

A Neoliberal Game: Responsibility for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this is simply neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a gilded elite who are infallible, whose decisions are always untouchable, whose mistakes can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach only to fire them for using excessively 3-4-3. Bring in the process guy and then bin him for taking excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for the latest summer signings, for the fact that the grownups – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.