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Itbecame clear the manager was able to withstand a loss to lower-league opposition. Survive an important continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Spurs sides for many years. He withstood losing at home to West Ham and Wolves, a lowly league position, the tactical inflexibility, undermining some of the club’s most promising homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, calling his team the worst in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed a single opponent against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Unfortunately, similar to numerous Premiership defender in Blackburn’s championship 1994-95 season, the coach took on the executive and seems to have missed. The most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a coach who frequently berated his squad for failing in one-on-one duels succumbing when confronted by the intense pressure and formidable presence of one of the Premier League’s most feared football executives.

In truth, this whole bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. Perhaps it might have been tempting, based on his nine months in a similar role at Southampton, to view him as merely a drudge within the club's structure: a man whose appointment was due largely to his friendship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada as any demonstrable skill. How wrong we all were. By masterfully outsmarting United’s feted manager, just as he bested the unfortunate Dan Ashworth earlier, he has proved himself as one of football's strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect of which United’s competitors are now rightly wary.

A Strategic Conflict Regarding Formation & Philosophy

For example, this was the director who being involved in the leadership that hired the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim originally, played a key role in attempting to convince Amorim to ditch his favored formation. Naturally, these entreaties faced pushback. But perhaps such directives carry more weight when issued by a man with the impeccable soccer background he possesses, a veteran of three England caps and a role in a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to explain his thought processes to the rest of us. Maybe one day he might be asked regarding why the coach is departing with a full payout, without any compensation reduction clause in place. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably all we would hear is a series of high-frequency signals and complex calculations. Wanting is not quite the same as being ready to receive.

An Supreme Power In the Throne

Naturally, in training our focus on the sporting director we are obscuring the true genius behind the club's current leadership. The director is, after all, simply carrying out the commands of his ultimate superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has made very clear his desire for a back four. It is reported, the owner has also proposed playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt analytics and metrics. Per reports, during a leadership summit early in his minority ownership, he declared that the team's approach of play “will be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, drawing from his previous experience in petrochemicals and sailing. Above all he is incredibly rich, and as we all know, the wealthy are superior: more perceptive, more wise, more tactically astute, simply superior. Who else would you trust to oversee an enlightened programme of austerity, the construction of a new stadium that appears similar to someone’s leftover knitting, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

A New Soccer Hierarchy: Executives Above Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to subordinate staff such as coaches, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for an up-and-coming, visionary coach with ideas and drive to join an organization and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many companies have these guys set up? What number of mass redundancies have they overseen? Far preferable to place genuine authority where it belongs: the executive class, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with impressive professional resumes. It is wiser to decide the tactics in the boardroom and appoint a coach who can tailor their methods accordingly. If managers were once chefs, they are now more akin to delivery personnel: not really responsible for the food, but still finally accountable if it arrives poorly or fails of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the public face of an organisation they have minimal power to change. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of literal children into Europe and wins domestic cups, and essentially is dismissed for talking. Wilfried Nancy sees his reputation ruined while the people who hired him live to blunder another day.

The Neoliberal Game: Responsibility Only for the Few

And possibly on some microcosmic level this is simply neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a privileged overclass who are infallible, whose choices remain sacrosanct, whose errors can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Hire the 3-4-3 coach only to fire him for playing too much that system. Hire the process guy and then discard him for requiring excessive time. And above all be grateful; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for the latest summer signings, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.