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Itranspired the manager endured losing against lower-league opposition. He weathered a decisive European final versus a particularly poor Spurs sides in living memory. He withstood losing at home to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, his rigid approach, laying waste to the team's most promising homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. Yet, there existed one adversary with whom Ruben Amorim was not permitted to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Unfortunately, like many a top-flight defender during Blackburn Rovers' championship campaign, the coach took on the executive and appears to have missed. Even the most distracted of readers will notice the irony here: a manager who frequently berated his squad for failing in individual battles succumbing in the face of the white heat and formidable presence of a the Premier League’s most feared football executives.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. It may have been tempting, based on his nine months in a similar role at Southampton, to view him as little more than a functionary within the club's structure: a man who owed his position largely to his friendship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada as any demonstrable skill. How wrong everyone was. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated head coach, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive earlier, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated as one of the sport’s strategic masterminds: a strategic mind of which the club's mid-table rivals are now rightly wary.

The Tactical Clash Over Formation and Philosophy

For example, this was Jason Wilcox who being involved in the hierarchy that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist the coach originally, was instrumental in attempting to convince Amorim to ditch his favored 3-4-3. Unsurprisingly, these pleas met a certain resistance. But perhaps such directives carry more weight when issued by a man of a man the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, holder of international appearances and a contributor to a title-winning side decades past.

Perhaps in time he may be persuaded to outline his thought processes to the rest of us. Maybe one day questions may arise why Amorim is walking away with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause in place. But Jason Wilcox seldom speaks in public, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as him – function at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, probably all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Wanting is not quite the same as being ready to receive.

The Ultimate Power Behind the Throne

Naturally, by focusing our attention on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the real power behind the modern United throne. Jason Wilcox is, in reality, merely executing the commands of his superior the billionaire owner, who in private has made very clear his desire for a back four. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also proposed deploying the forward in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for United to adopt analytics and metrics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit early in his investment, he announced that United’s style of play “shall be determined in this room”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his background in industry and yachting. Above all he remains incredibly rich, and it is known, the rich are superior: more insightful, more wise, more tactically astute, simply better. Whom else would you trust to oversee an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the building of a modern arena that appears a lot like an abstract design, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

A New Football Order: Executives Above Coaches

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent at the elite levels of the game. Historically, teams mistakenly entrusted big footballing decisions to subordinate staff such as coaches, scouts – players themselves. Perhaps it was once feasible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and drive to join a club and see their vision supported to fruition. Yet how many businesses have these guys set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Far preferable to invest genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the guys with impressive professional resumes. Better by far to determine the strategy by the directors and appoint someone who can tailor their methods accordingly. If coaches were formerly chefs, they are now more like delivery personnel: not creating the product, yet ultimately answerable should it be delivered cold or fails to meet standards.

In the meantime, a coach's role has become not about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the visible figurehead for a club they can do little to influence. A coach at Chelsea takes a squad of literal children into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and effectively is dismissed for talking. Wilfried Nancy finds his reputation ruined whereas the people who hired him continue to make errors another day.

The Modern Corporate Game: Accountability for the Few

And perhaps on some microcosmic level this represents neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a privileged elite who are infallible, whose choices are always sacrosanct, whose mistakes can always be resolved by sacking without justification. Hire the 3-4-3 coach and then dismiss them for using too much 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and then discard him for requiring too long. And above all show gratitude; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for your new player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – however well qualified – remain in control.