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Tbecame clear the manager endured losing against lower-league opposition. He weathered an important continental showpiece against one of the worst Tottenham teams in living memory. He could survive home defeats to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, an unwavering system, laying waste to some of the club’s best homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, labeling the squad the worst the club has ever seen. But there was one adversary with whom Ruben Amorim would not be allowed to engage. If you challenge the sporting director, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, similar to numerous top-flight defender during Blackburn Rovers' title-winning campaign, the coach took on Jason Wilcox and appears to have missed. The most casual observer will notice the irony here: a coach who often railed his squad for losing one-on-one duels crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of a England's top division's most feared football executives.

And frankly, this entire painful saga appears to portray the director in a whole new light. It may have been tempting, given his nine months of experience with the Saints, to view him as merely a functionary in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position as much to his friendship with ex-colleague a fellow executive as any verifiable talent. How mistaken we all were. By masterfully outsmarting United’s feted head coach, just as he bested the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, he has proved himself as one of football's true generals: a tactical intellect that United’s mid-table rivals are now rightly wary.

A Tactical Conflict Regarding System and Ideology

To illustrate, this was Jason Wilcox who being involved in the leadership that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim originally, was instrumental in trying to persuade him to abandon his favored 3-4-3. Naturally, these pleas faced pushback. However, these judgements carry more weight when issued by a man with the impeccable soccer background of Jason Wilcox, holder of three England caps and a role in a championship team decades past.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point he might be asked why Amorim is departing with a full payout, with no penalty clause in place. The director seldom speaks publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as him – simply operate on a plane exceeding our prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not the same as being prepared to comprehend it.

The Supreme Authority Behind the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on the sporting director we overlook the real power behind the modern United throne. The director is, in reality, merely executing the directives of his ultimate superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has made very clear his preference for a four-man defense. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt analytics and analytics. Per reports, during a leadership summit early in his minority ownership, he declared that United’s style to football “shall be decided by this group”.

After all, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate football matters, leveraging his background in petrochemicals and yachting. Most importantly he is incredibly rich, and as we all know, the wealthy are superior: more perceptive, more wise, strategically brilliant, simply superior. Who else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of austerity, the construction of a new stadium that looks a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

The New Soccer Order: Executives Above Coaches

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. For decades, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to low-level employees like managers, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with a philosophy and drive to go into a club and see their vision supported to fruition. Yet how many companies have such individuals established? What number of large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Better by far to place the real power where it belongs: the executive class, the open-necked shirt brigade, the guys with impressive professional resumes. Better by far to determine the strategy in the boardroom and hire someone who will adapt their offering to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they have become more like delivery personnel: not really creating the food, but still ultimately answerable should it be delivered poorly or fails of the box.

Nowadays, a coach's role has become less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the visible figurehead of an organisation they have minimal power to change. A coach at Chelsea leads a team of literal children into Europe and wins domestic cups, and effectively is dismissed for speaking out. Wilfried Nancy sees his reputation ruined whereas the people who appointed him live to blunder another day.

A Modern Corporate Football: Accountability Only for the Few

And perhaps in a small way this represents neoliberalism in action: the rise of a privileged overclass who are infallible, whose decisions are always untouchable, whose mistakes can always be sacked away without justification. Hire the system coach and then fire him for playing too much 3-4-3. Bring in the process guy and then bin them for taking too long. And most importantly show gratitude; for your modest increases in ticket costs, for your new summer signings, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.