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Transpired Ruben Amorim could survive defeat by lower-league opposition. Survive losing a crucial continental showpiece against a particularly poor Tottenham teams in living memory. He could survive losing at home against West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to some of the club’s best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the poorest in Manchester United history. But there was one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. If you challenge the sporting director, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, like many a top-flight right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning 1994-95 season, Amorim came at the executive and seems to have failed. Even the most distracted of readers will notice the irony here: a coach who frequently berated his squad for losing one-on-one duels crumbling in the face of the white heat and formidable presence of one of England's top division's most feared football executives.

In truth, this entire bruising episode appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. Perhaps it might have been easy, given his nine months in a similar role at Southampton, to view Jason Wilcox as little more than a drudge in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position as much to his friendship with ex-colleague a fellow executive rather than any demonstrable skill. How mistaken everyone was. By masterfully outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has proved himself as one of the sport’s true generals: a strategic mind that the club's mid-table rivals will now be justifiably concerned.

A Strategic Conflict Regarding System & Philosophy

To illustrate, it was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the hierarchy that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in attempting to convince him to abandon his favored 3-4-3. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. But perhaps such directives carry more weight when delivered from the mouth of a man the unimpeachable soccer background of Jason Wilcox, holder of three England caps and a contributor to a title-winning side decades past.

Maybe eventually Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point he might be asked why Amorim is walking away with a full payout, with no compensation reduction clause activated. But Jason Wilcox seldom speaks publicly, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as him – function on a plane beyond our own mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, most likely we would perceive is a series of ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not equivalent to being ready to receive.

The Ultimate Authority In Command

But of course, in training our focus on the sporting director we overlook the real power behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, in reality, simply carrying out the directives of his ultimate superior the billionaire owner, who privately has made very clear his desire for a four-man defense. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also suggested deploying the forward as a right wing-back. 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 the team's approach to football “shall be determined by this group”.

After all, Sir Jim is an expert in these intricate footballing stuff, drawing from his previous experience in industry and yachting. Most importantly 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 cost-cutting, the construction of a modern arena that appears a lot like someone’s leftover knitting, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

A New Soccer Hierarchy: Directors Above Managers

This represents a shift we are increasingly seeing in top-tier of the game. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to low-level employees such as coaches, talent spotters – players themselves. Maybe previously feasible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with a philosophy and drive to go into an organization and see their vision through to completion. But how many businesses have these guys set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they managed? Better by far to place the real power where it rightly belongs: the executive class, the casually dressed executives, the guys with the jaw-dropping LinkedIn profiles. Better by far to determine the tactics in the boardroom and appoint a coach who can tailor their offering to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not responsible for the food, yet ultimately answerable if it arrives cold or fails to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist on the front desk, the visible figurehead of an organisation they have minimal power to change. Enzo Maresca leads a team of very young players into Europe and wins two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for talking. Wilfried Nancy sees his reputation ruined whereas those individuals who hired him continue to make errors another day.

A Modern Corporate Game: Responsibility for the Coaches

And possibly in a small way this is simply corporate governance in action: the rise of a privileged 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 and then fire him for using too much 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and then discard them for taking excessive time. And above all be grateful; for your modest season ticket price rises, for the latest player acquisitions, for the reality that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.