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Turns out the manager endured losing against Grimsby. Survive a decisive continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Spurs sides in living memory. He could survive home defeats against West Ham and Wolves, a lowly league position, his rigid approach, laying waste to the team's most promising academy products, the 32% win rate, calling his team the poorest the club has ever seen. Yet, there existed one adversary against whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, like many a top-flight right-back during Blackburn Rovers' championship campaign, the coach took on the executive and appears to have failed. Even the most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a manager who frequently berated his squad for failing in one-on-one duels crumbling in the face of the intense pressure and formidable presence of one of the Premier League’s most intimidating football executives.

In truth, this whole bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a different perspective. It may have been tempting, given his brief stint in a similar role at Southampton, to regard him as merely a functionary within the club's structure: an individual whose appointment was due largely to his friendship with his former boss a fellow executive rather than any demonstrable skill. How wrong we all were. In brilliantly outmanoeuvring the club's celebrated manager, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive earlier, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated as one of football's strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect that United’s mid-table rivals will now be justifiably concerned.

The Strategic Clash Over Formation & Ideology

For example, this was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the hierarchy that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in trying to persuade Amorim to abandon his favored formation. Unsurprisingly, these pleas were resisted. But perhaps such directives hold greater authority when delivered from the mouth of a man the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, a veteran of international appearances and a role in a title-winning side from 31 years ago.

Maybe eventually he may be persuaded to outline his thought processes publicly. Perhaps at some point he might be asked why Amorim is walking away with full compensation, without any compensation reduction clause activated. The director speaks rarely publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers of this sport – men like Jason Wilcox – function on a plane exceeding our prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, probably all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not equivalent to being prepared to receive.

The Ultimate Power In the Throne

But of course, in training our focus on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the true genius behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, in reality, merely executing the commands of his ultimate superior the billionaire owner, who in private has emphasized his preference for a four-man defense. According to reports, the owner has also proposed deploying the forward as a right wing-back. The owner is eager for the club to embrace analytics and analytics. According to ESPN, during a leadership summit soon after his minority ownership, 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 football matters, drawing from his background in industry and sailing. Most importantly he remains incredibly rich, and it is known, the wealthy are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, strategically brilliant, fundamentally better. Whom else could one trust to manage a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the building of a modern arena that looks a lot like someone’s leftover knitting, the signing of a new striker?

A Modern Soccer Order: Directors Over Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent in top-tier football. Historically, teams mistakenly delegated major sporting choices to subordinate staff like managers, talent spotters – players themselves. Perhaps it was once possible for a young, visionary coach with a philosophy and energy to join a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many companies have these guys set up? How many large-scale layoffs have they managed? Better by far to invest genuine authority where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with impressive LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to determine the strategy in the boardroom and hire someone who can tailor their methods to suit. If coaches were formerly chefs, they are now more akin to Deliveroo drivers: not responsible for the product, but still ultimately answerable if it arrives poorly or fails to meet standards.

In the meantime, their job has become less about crafting the philosophy and more about marketing it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the visible figurehead of an organisation they have minimal power to influence. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and essentially is dismissed for speaking out. Wilfried Nancy finds his reputation ruined whereas those individuals who hired him continue to make errors indefinitely.

A Neoliberal Football: Responsibility for the Coaches

And perhaps in a small way this represents neoliberalism in action: the elevation of a gilded elite who can never be wrong, whose choices remain sacrosanct, whose errors can always be sacked away without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach only to fire him for using too much that system. Bring in the process guy and then discard him for taking too long. And most importantly show gratitude; for your modest season ticket price rises, for your new player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – are in charge.