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Tbecame clear he could survive losing against lower-league opposition. He weathered an important European final versus one of the worst Spurs sides in living memory. He withstood home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to the team's best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling his team the poorest in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed one adversary with whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to tango. You come at the sporting director, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, similar to numerous top-flight right-back in Blackburn’s championship 1994-95 season, Amorim took on Jason Wilcox and appears to have failed. Even the most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a coach who often railed his squad for failing in one-on-one duels crumbling when confronted by the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of 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 tempting, based on his brief stint of experience at Southampton, to view Jason Wilcox as merely a drudge within the club's structure: a man who owed his position as much to his close relationship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada rather than any verifiable talent. How wrong everyone was. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated manager, as he outmanoeuvred the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, he has proved himself to be among the sport’s strategic masterminds: a strategic mind of which the club's mid-table rivals are now rightly wary.

A Tactical Clash Regarding System and Philosophy

For example, it was Jason Wilcox , after having been part of the leadership that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach in the first place, was instrumental in trying to persuade him to abandon his beloved formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. However, such directives carry more weight when delivered from the mouth with the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, holder of three England caps and a role in a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point questions may arise regarding why the coach is departing with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause in place. But Jason Wilcox seldom speaks publicly, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – men like Jason Wilcox – simply operate at a level exceeding our prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive would be high-frequency signals and complex calculations. Wanting is not the same as being ready to comprehend it.

The Supreme Authority In the Throne

But of course, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. Jason Wilcox is, after all, merely executing the directives of his ultimate line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has emphasized his desire for a four-man defense. According to reports, Ratcliffe has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt analytics and metrics. Per reports, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, he announced that United’s style of play “shall be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is an expert in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his previous experience in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he remains immensely wealthy, and it is known, the rich are the best of us: more insightful, sagacious, strategically brilliant, simply better. Who else would you trust to manage an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the construction of a new stadium that looks a lot like someone’s leftover knitting, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

A Modern Football Order: Executives Above Coaches

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, clubs foolishly entrusted big footballing decisions to low-level employees like managers, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with ideas and energy to go into a club and implement their plan through to completion. But how many businesses have these guys set up? What number of mass redundancies have they managed? Better by far to invest the real power where it belongs: the executive class, the open-necked shirt brigade, the guys with impressive professional resumes. It is wiser to decide the strategy by the directors and appoint someone who will adapt their methods to suit. If managers were once chefs, they have become more akin to delivery personnel: not really creating the food, yet ultimately answerable should it be delivered cold or leaks out of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role has become less about defining the vision and more about marketing it: the receptionist of the operation, the public face for a club they can do little to change. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of literal children into the Champions League and wins two medium-sized trophies, and effectively is dismissed for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his reputation ruined whereas the people who appointed him live to blunder indefinitely.

The Neoliberal Game: Responsibility Only for the Few

And perhaps on some microcosmic level this represents corporate governance in action: the rise of a gilded overclass who are infallible, whose decisions are always sacrosanct, whose errors can always be sacked away without explanation. Hire the 3-4-3 coach and then fire them for playing too much 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and later discard him for taking too long. And above all show gratitude; for your modest increases in ticket costs, for the latest summer signings, for the reality that the adults – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.