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Iturns out he was able to withstand defeat by Grimsby. He weathered an important European final versus a particularly poor Tottenham teams for many years. He withstood home defeats against domestic rivals, a lowly league position, an unwavering system, laying waste to some of the club’s most promising academy products, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the poorest the club has ever seen. But there was one adversary with whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to tango. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, like many a Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning campaign, Amorim took on Jason Wilcox and seems to have failed. The most casual observer can see the paradoxical situation: a coach who often railed at his players for losing one-on-one duels crumbling when confronted by the white heat and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most feared football executives.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode seems to paint the director in a whole new light. It may have been tempting, given his brief stint in a similar role at Southampton, to view Jason Wilcox as merely a functionary within the club's structure: a man who owed his position as much to his close relationship with his former boss Omar Berrada rather than any demonstrable skill. How wrong we all were. By masterfully outsmarting the club's celebrated manager, just as he bested the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, he has demonstrated to be among the sport’s true generals: a tactical intellect that the club's mid-table rivals will now be justifiably concerned.

The Tactical Clash Regarding Formation and Philosophy

For example, this was the director , after being involved in the leadership that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim in the first place, played a key role in attempting to convince him to ditch his favored formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. However, such directives carry more weight when issued from the mouth with the unimpeachable soccer background he possesses, a veteran of international appearances and a role in a title-winning side decades past.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox might agree to explain his thought processes publicly. Maybe one day questions may arise why Amorim is departing with full compensation, with no compensation reduction clause in place. The director seldom speaks in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers of this sport – men like him – simply operate on a plane exceeding our mundane comprehension. Were he to speak, most likely all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and complex calculations. Wanting is not quite equivalent to being prepared to receive.

An Supreme Authority In the Throne

Naturally, by focusing our attention on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the real power behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, in reality, merely executing the directives of his superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who privately has emphasized his desire for a back four. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo in a wing-back role. The owner is eager for United to adopt analytics and analytics. Per reports, during a leadership summit early in his investment, he declared that the team's approach to football “will be determined by this group”.

Ultimately, Ratcliffe is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his background in petrochemicals and sailing. Most importantly he remains immensely wealthy, and as we all know, the wealthy are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, more tactically astute, simply better. Who else could one trust to oversee an enlightened programme of cost-cutting, the building of a new stadium that appears a lot like someone’s leftover knitting, the signing of a new striker?

The Modern Soccer Order: Directors Over Coaches

This is a trend that is becoming prevalent in top-tier of the game. Historically, teams mistakenly delegated big footballing decisions to low-level employees like managers, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for an up-and-coming, visionary coach with ideas and drive to go into a club and implement their plan through to completion. But how many companies have these guys set up? How many mass redundancies have they managed? Better by far to invest the real power where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. It is wiser to determine the tactics in the boardroom and appoint someone who will adapt their offering to suit. If coaches were formerly chefs, they have become more akin to delivery personnel: not really responsible for the product, yet finally accountable should it be delivered poorly or fails of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist of the operation, the public face of an organisation they have minimal power to change. A coach at Chelsea takes a squad of literal children into Europe and wins domestic cups, and essentially gets sacked for talking. A manager at Celtic finds his reputation ruined while those individuals who hired him live to blunder indefinitely.

A Neoliberal Game: Accountability Only for the Coaches

And perhaps on some microcosmic level this is simply neoliberalism at work: the rise of a privileged elite who can never be wrong, whose decisions are always untouchable, whose mistakes can invariably be sacked away without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach and then fire him for using too much 3-4-3. Bring in the process guy and later discard them for requiring too long. And most importantly show gratitude; for the incremental increases in ticket costs, for your new player acquisitions, for the fact that the grownups – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.