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Itranspired Ruben Amorim could survive defeat by Grimsby. Survive a decisive continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Spurs sides for many years. He withstood losing at home to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to some of the club’s best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. But there was one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to engage. You come at Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Unfortunately, similar to numerous Premiership right-back during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning 1994-95 season, Amorim came at the executive and appears to have failed. The most distracted of readers will notice the irony here: a coach who often railed at his players for losing one-on-one duels crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of a the Premier League’s most feared sporting directors.

In truth, this whole painful saga appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been tempting, given his brief stint in a similar role at Southampton, to view Jason Wilcox as little more than a drudge within the club's structure: an individual who owed his position as much to his friendship with his former boss Omar Berrada rather than any demonstrable skill. How wrong everyone was. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless a previous executive earlier, he has proved himself as one of football's true generals: a tactical intellect that United’s competitors will now be justifiably concerned.

A Tactical Clash Over System & Philosophy

To illustrate, it was the director who being involved in the hierarchy that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach in the first place, played a key role in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his beloved formation. Naturally, these pleas faced pushback. But perhaps such directives hold greater authority when issued by a man of a man the impeccable soccer background he possesses, a veteran of international appearances and a contributor to a championship team decades past.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to outline his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is departing with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause activated. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely publicly, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers of this sport – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate at a level exceeding our mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, probably all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Desiring an explanation is not equivalent to being ready to comprehend it.

The Supreme Power Behind the Throne

But of course, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we overlook the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, in reality, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has made very clear his preference for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for United to embrace analytics and analytics. Per reports, during a leadership summit early in his investment, he announced that the team's approach to football “will be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in this technical footballing stuff, leveraging his background in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he remains immensely wealthy, and as we all know, the rich are the best of us: more perceptive, more wise, strategically brilliant, fundamentally superior. Who else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the building of a new stadium that appears a lot like an abstract design, the signing of Benjamin Sesko?

A New Soccer Order: Directors Above Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels football. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to subordinate staff like managers, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, visionary coach with a philosophy and energy to go into a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many businesses have such individuals set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they managed? Far preferable to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the guys with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. Better by far to decide the tactics in the boardroom and hire someone who can tailor their methods accordingly. If managers were once chefs, they have become more like Deliveroo drivers: not really responsible for the product, yet ultimately answerable if it arrives cold or leaks out to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about defining the vision and more about selling it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the visible figurehead of an organisation they can do little to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into Europe and wins two medium-sized trophies, and effectively gets sacked for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his standing damaged whereas the people who hired him live to blunder another day.

A Modern Corporate Football: Responsibility for the Coaches

And possibly on some microcosmic level this is simply neoliberalism in action: the rise of a gilded overclass who are infallible, whose decisions are always sacrosanct, whose mistakes can invariably be sacked away without explanation. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach only to fire him for using excessively 3-4-3. Hire the process guy and later bin them for requiring excessive time. And above all be grateful; for your modest season ticket price rises, for the latest summer signings, for the fact that the adults – however well qualified – remain in control.