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Tbecame clear Ruben Amorim was able to withstand a loss to Grimsby. He weathered losing a crucial European final versus one of the worst Spurs sides in living memory. He could survive home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, an unwavering system, laying waste to the team's best academy products, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. But there was one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to engage. You come at the sporting director, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, similar to numerous top-flight right-back in Blackburn’s championship 1994-95 season, Amorim took on the executive and seems to have missed. Even the most casual observer can see the irony here: a coach who often railed his squad for losing individual battles succumbing in the face of the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most intimidating football executives.

In truth, this entire bruising episode seems to paint the director in a whole new light. It may have been easy, based on his brief stint in a similar role with the Saints, to view him as merely a functionary within the club's structure: an individual who owed his position as much to his close relationship with ex-colleague a fellow executive as any verifiable talent. How wrong everyone was. By masterfully outsmarting the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated as one of the sport’s strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect that United’s competitors are now justifiably concerned.

A Tactical Conflict Regarding Formation and Philosophy

For example, it was the director who having been part of the leadership that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim originally, played a key role in attempting to convince him to ditch his beloved 3-4-3. Naturally, these pleas faced pushback. However, such directives hold greater authority when delivered from the mouth of a man the unimpeachable football pedigree he possesses, holder of three England caps and a contributor to a title-winning side decades past.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to explain his reasoning publicly. Maybe one day he might be asked regarding why the coach is departing with a full payout, without any penalty clause activated. The director speaks rarely in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as him – function at a level exceeding our mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive would be ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not quite equivalent to being ready to receive.

The Ultimate Authority Behind the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, after all, simply carrying out the commands of his line manager the billionaire owner, who privately has emphasized his preference for a back four. It is reported, the owner has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for the club to adopt analytics and analytics. Per reports, in an executive meeting early in his investment, he announced that United’s style of play “shall be decided in this room”.

After all, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, drawing from his background in industry and sailing. Most importantly he remains incredibly rich, and as we all know, the rich are superior: more perceptive, sagacious, strategically brilliant, fundamentally better. Who else could one trust to manage a strategic plan of austerity, the building of a modern arena that appears a lot like an abstract design, the signing of a new striker?

The Modern Football Hierarchy: Executives Over Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels football. Historically, teams mistakenly entrusted big footballing decisions to subordinate staff such as coaches, scouts – players themselves. Maybe previously possible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with ideas and drive to join an organization and implement their plan through to completion. But how many companies have these guys established? What number of mass redundancies have they overseen? Better by far to invest genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. Better by far to determine the strategy in the boardroom and appoint someone who can tailor their methods to suit. If managers were once chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not really responsible for the product, but still finally accountable if it arrives cold or leaks out of the box.

In the meantime, their job is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the public face for a club they have minimal power to influence. Enzo Maresca leads a team of very young players into the Champions League and wins domestic cups, and essentially is dismissed for talking. A manager at Celtic finds his reputation ruined whereas the people who hired him continue to make errors indefinitely.

The Neoliberal Football: Responsibility Only for the Coaches

And perhaps on some microcosmic level this represents neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a gilded elite who are infallible, whose decisions remain sacrosanct, whose errors can always be resolved by sacking without explanation. Appoint the system coach and then dismiss them for using excessively 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and later discard them for requiring too long. And most importantly be grateful; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for the latest player acquisitions, for the reality that the grownups – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.