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Itranspired the manager endured defeat by lower-league opposition. Survive a decisive continental showpiece versus one of the worst Spurs sides for many years. He could survive home defeats to domestic rivals, a lowly league position, his rigid approach, undermining some of the club’s most promising academy products, the 32% win rate, labeling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. Yet, there existed a single opponent with whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to engage. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Unfortunately, like many a Premiership defender during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning 1994-95 season, Amorim came at the executive and seems to have missed. The most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a manager who often railed his squad for losing individual battles crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of one of the Premier League’s most feared football executives.

In truth, this entire bruising episode seems to paint the director in a different perspective. It may have been tempting, given his nine months of experience with the Saints, to regard 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 mistaken we all were. By masterfully outsmarting United’s feted head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless Dan Ashworth earlier, he has proved himself to be among football's strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect that United’s mid-table rivals will now be rightly wary.

A Strategic Clash Regarding System and Philosophy

For example, this was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the leadership that hired the rigid 3-4-3 advocate the coach in the first place, was instrumental in trying to persuade Amorim to ditch his favored 3-4-3. Unsurprisingly, these pleas met a certain resistance. However, such directives hold greater authority when issued from the mouth of a man the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, a veteran of three England caps and a contributor to a championship team decades past.

Maybe eventually he might agree to outline his reasoning publicly. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is departing with a full payout, without any compensation reduction clause in place. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – men like him – simply operate at a level beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely we would perceive would be high-frequency signals and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not equivalent to being prepared to comprehend it.

An Supreme Authority In Command

Naturally, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. Jason Wilcox is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager the billionaire owner, who privately has emphasized his desire for a back four. It is reported, the owner has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. The owner is eager for United to embrace analytics and analytics. Per reports, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, he announced that United’s style of play “will be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is an expert in these intricate footballing stuff, drawing from his background in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he remains incredibly rich, and as we all know, the wealthy are superior: more insightful, more wise, more tactically astute, simply superior. Whom else could one trust to oversee an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the construction of a modern arena that looks a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of a new striker?

A New Soccer Hierarchy: Executives Over Managers

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent in top-tier of the game. For decades, clubs foolishly delegated major sporting choices to subordinate staff such as coaches, talent spotters – players themselves. Perhaps it was once possible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with a philosophy and energy to join an organization and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many companies have such individuals set up? What number of mass redundancies have they managed? Better by far to place the real power where it belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with impressive professional resumes. It is wiser to determine the tactics in the boardroom and appoint someone who can tailor their methods to suit. If managers were formerly chefs, they are now more like Deliveroo drivers: not really creating the food, but still ultimately answerable should it be delivered cold or leaks out to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the receptionist on the front desk, the public face for a club they can do little to influence. Enzo Maresca leads a team of literal children into the Champions League and secures domestic cups, and effectively is dismissed for speaking out. Wilfried Nancy sees his reputation ruined whereas those individuals who appointed him continue to make errors indefinitely.

A Neoliberal Game: Accountability for the Few

And perhaps in a small way this is simply corporate governance at work: the elevation of a gilded elite who are infallible, whose choices are always untouchable, whose mistakes can invariably be resolved by sacking without explanation. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach and then dismiss him for playing too much 3-4-3. Bring in the project manager and later bin him for taking excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for your modest increases in ticket costs, for your new summer signings, for the reality that the grownups – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.