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Transpired the manager could survive defeat by Grimsby. Survive losing a crucial continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Tottenham teams for many years. He withstood home defeats to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, his rigid approach, laying waste to some of the club’s best academy products, a poor winning percentage, labeling the squad the poorest in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed a single opponent against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. You come at Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Unfortunately, like many a Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning 1994-95 season, the coach came at Jason Wilcox and seems to have missed. The most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a coach who frequently berated his squad for failing in one-on-one duels crumbling in the face of the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most feared football executives.

And frankly, this whole painful saga appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been easy, based on his brief stint in a similar role with the Saints, to regard him as merely a drudge in the United exoskeleton: an individual who owed his position largely to his friendship with ex-colleague a fellow executive rather than any verifiable talent. How wrong we all were. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive before him, he has proved himself to be among the sport’s strategic masterminds: a strategic mind that the club's competitors will now be rightly wary.

The Tactical Clash Regarding System and Philosophy

For example, this was the director , after having been part of the hierarchy that hired the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in trying to persuade Amorim to ditch his beloved formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties met a certain resistance. However, such directives carry more weight when delivered by a man with the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, holder of international appearances and a role in a championship team from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to explain his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is walking away with a full payout, with no penalty clause in place. The director speaks rarely in public, and with very good reason. The true intellectuals of this sport – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely we would perceive is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not quite the same as being prepared to receive.

An Ultimate Power In Command

But of course, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we overlook the real power behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his ultimate superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has emphasized his preference for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also proposed deploying the forward in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for United to adopt data science and analytics. According to ESPN, in an executive meeting early in his investment, he announced that the team's approach of play “will be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is a specialist in these intricate football matters, drawing from his background in petrochemicals and yachting. Above all he remains incredibly rich, and as we all know, the wealthy are superior: more perceptive, more wise, more tactically astute, simply superior. Who else could one trust to oversee a strategic plan of austerity, the construction of a modern arena that appears a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

A Modern Soccer Hierarchy: Directors Above Managers

This represents a shift we are increasingly seeing in top-tier of the game. Historically, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to subordinate staff like managers, talent spotters – players themselves. Maybe previously feasible for a young, visionary coach with a philosophy and energy to join an organization and implement their plan through to completion. But how many companies have such individuals set up? How many mass redundancies have they managed? Better by far to place genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with the jaw-dropping LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to decide the strategy by the directors and hire someone who will adapt their offering accordingly. If managers were once chefs, they are now more akin to Deliveroo drivers: not responsible for the product, yet finally accountable if it arrives cold or leaks out to meet standards.

Nowadays, their job has become not about defining the vision and more about selling it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the public face of an organisation they can do little to change. A coach at Chelsea leads a team of literal children into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for speaking out. Wilfried Nancy finds his reputation ruined while those individuals who hired him live to blunder another day.

The Modern Corporate Game: Responsibility for the Few

And possibly in a small way this represents neoliberalism at work: the elevation of a gilded elite who are infallible, whose choices remain untouchable, whose errors can invariably be sacked away without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach and then fire them for playing excessively 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and later discard them for requiring excessive time. And most importantly show gratitude; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for your new player acquisitions, for the reality that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.