🔗 Share this article

Itbecame clear Ruben Amorim was able to withstand losing against Grimsby. He weathered a decisive continental showpiece versus a particularly poor Spurs sides for many years. He withstood home defeats to domestic rivals, finishing 15th, the tactical inflexibility, laying waste to some of the club’s most promising homegrown talent, a poor winning percentage, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. Yet, there existed one adversary with whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to engage. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

Regrettably, similar to numerous Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s title-winning 1994-95 season, the coach took on Jason Wilcox and appears to have failed. The most casual observer will notice the paradoxical situation: a coach who often railed at his players for failing in individual battles succumbing when confronted by the intense pressure and animal charisma of one of England's top division's most feared football executives.

In truth, this whole painful saga appears to portray the director in a whole new light. It may have been tempting, given his brief stint of experience with the Saints, to view him as little more than a functionary in the United exoskeleton: a man who owed his position as much to his friendship with ex-colleague a fellow executive rather than any verifiable talent. How wrong everyone was. By masterfully outsmarting United’s feted head coach, just as he bested the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, Jason Wilcox has demonstrated to be among the sport’s strategic masterminds: a tactical intellect of which United’s mid-table rivals will now be rightly wary.

The Tactical Clash Over Formation and Philosophy

For example, this was Jason Wilcox who having been part of the hierarchy that appointed the 3-4-3 fundamentalist Amorim originally, was instrumental in attempting to convince Amorim to abandon his beloved formation. Unsurprisingly, these pleas were resisted. However, these judgements hold greater authority when issued from the mouth with the unimpeachable soccer background he possesses, a veteran of three England caps and a contributor to a championship team from 31 years ago.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to outline his reasoning to the rest of us. Perhaps at some point questions may arise why Amorim is departing with a full payout, without any compensation reduction clause in place. The director seldom speaks publicly, and with very good reason. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane beyond our own prosaic understanding. If he ever did speak, most likely we would perceive is a series of high-frequency signals and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not quite equivalent to being ready to receive.

An Supreme Authority Behind the Throne

Naturally, in training our focus on the sporting director we are obscuring the real power behind the club's current leadership. The director is, after all, merely executing the commands of his superior Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has emphasized his desire for a back four. According to reports, the owner has also suggested playing Bryan Mbeumo in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for United to adopt data science and metrics. Per reports, in an executive meeting soon after his investment, he declared that United’s style to football “will be decided by this group”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is a specialist in these intricate footballing stuff, leveraging his background in industry and yachting. Most importantly he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the wealthy are the best of us: more insightful, sagacious, strategically brilliant, simply better. Who else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the building of a modern arena that appears a lot like someone’s leftover knitting, the acquisition of Benjamin Sesko?

The New Soccer Hierarchy: Directors Above Coaches

This represents a shift we are increasingly seeing in top-tier football. For decades, clubs foolishly entrusted big footballing decisions to subordinate staff like managers, talent spotters – even footballers. Perhaps it was once possible for a young, innovative manager with ideas and energy to join a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. But how many businesses have such individuals set up? What number of mass redundancies have they overseen? Better by far to invest the real power where it rightly belongs: the leadership tier, the casually dressed executives, the individuals with impressive LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to determine the strategy in the boardroom and hire someone who will adapt their methods to suit. If coaches were once chefs, they have become more akin to delivery personnel: not really creating the food, yet finally accountable if it arrives poorly or leaks out of the box.

Nowadays, their job is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the receptionist of the operation, the visible figurehead for a club they can do little to change. Enzo Maresca takes a squad of very young players into Europe and wins two medium-sized trophies, and essentially gets sacked for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his reputation ruined whereas those individuals who appointed him continue to make errors another day.

A Neoliberal Game: Responsibility Only for the Coaches

And perhaps in a small way this represents corporate governance at work: the elevation of a gilded overclass who can never be wrong, whose decisions remain untouchable, whose errors can invariably be sacked away without explanation. Hire the 3-4-3 coach only to fire him for playing excessively 3-4-3. Hire the project manager and later discard them for requiring excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for the latest player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.