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Transpired the manager was able to withstand a loss to Grimsby. Survive an important continental showpiece against one of the worst Spurs sides in living memory. He withstood losing at home to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, the tactical inflexibility, squandering some of the club’s best homegrown talent, the 32% win rate, calling the squad the worst in Manchester United history. But there was a single opponent with whom the Portuguese coach was not permitted to tango. You come at Jason Wilcox, and you best not miss.

Regrettably, similar to numerous Premiership right-back in Blackburn’s championship 1994-95 season, Amorim came at the executive and seems to have missed. Even the most distracted of readers can see the irony here: a manager who often railed his squad for losing individual battles crumbling when confronted by the white heat and formidable presence of a England's top division's most intimidating sporting directors.

And frankly, this entire bruising episode seems to paint Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. It may have been easy, given his brief stint of experience with the Saints, to view him as merely a drudge in the United exoskeleton: an individual whose appointment was due largely to his close relationship with his former boss a fellow executive rather than any demonstrable skill. How mistaken we all were. In brilliantly outsmarting the club's celebrated manager, just as he bested the unfortunate a previous executive before him, Jason Wilcox has proved himself as one of the sport’s true generals: a tactical intellect that the club's competitors will now be justifiably concerned.

The Strategic Clash Regarding Formation and Ideology

To illustrate, this was the director , after having been part of the hierarchy that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim originally, was instrumental in attempting to convince him to abandon his favored formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. But perhaps these judgements hold greater authority when delivered from the mouth with the impeccable football pedigree of Jason Wilcox, a veteran of international appearances and a role in a title-winning side decades past.

Perhaps in time Jason Wilcox may be persuaded to outline his reasoning publicly. Maybe one day he might be asked why Amorim is walking away with full compensation, without any compensation reduction clause activated. The director seldom speaks in public, for excellent reasons. The real thinkers in football – individuals such as him – simply operate at a level beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably we would perceive would be high-frequency signals and complex calculations. Desiring an explanation is not equivalent to being ready to comprehend it.

An Ultimate Authority Behind the Throne

But of course, by focusing our attention on Jason Wilcox we are obscuring the true genius behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his line manager Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who in private has made very clear his preference for a four-man defense. It is reported, Ratcliffe has also proposed deploying the forward in a wing-back role. Ratcliffe is keen for the club to adopt data science and analytics. Per reports, in an executive meeting early in his minority ownership, he announced that United’s style of play “will be determined in this room”.

After all, Ratcliffe is an expert in this technical footballing stuff, drawing from his background in industry and sailing. Above all he is immensely wealthy, and it is known, the wealthy are the best of us: more perceptive, sagacious, more tactically astute, simply superior. Who else would you trust to manage a strategic plan of austerity, the construction of a new stadium that appears similar to an abstract design, the signing of a new striker?

The New Soccer Hierarchy: Directors Above Managers

This represents a shift that is becoming prevalent in top-tier of the game. Historically, clubs foolishly entrusted big footballing decisions to subordinate staff such as coaches, talent spotters – even footballers. Maybe previously possible for an up-and-coming, innovative manager with a philosophy and drive to go into a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many companies have such individuals set up? How many large-scale layoffs have they managed? Far preferable to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the individuals with the jaw-dropping LinkedIn profiles. It is wiser to decide the tactics in the boardroom and hire someone who can tailor their methods accordingly. If coaches were formerly chefs, they have become more akin to Deliveroo drivers: not really responsible for the product, yet ultimately answerable should it be delivered poorly or leaks out of the box.

In the meantime, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the front-facing representative on the front desk, the public face for a club they have minimal power to change. A coach at Chelsea takes a squad of very young players into the Champions League and secures two medium-sized trophies, and effectively gets sacked for talking. Wilfried Nancy sees his standing damaged whereas the people who hired him continue to make errors indefinitely.

The Modern Corporate Football: Accountability for the Few

And perhaps on some microcosmic level this represents corporate governance in action: the rise of a privileged overclass who are infallible, whose decisions remain sacrosanct, whose errors can invariably be sacked away without justification. Hire the 3-4-3 coach and then dismiss him for using too much that system. Bring in the project manager and then bin him for taking too long. And above all show gratitude; for the incremental season ticket price rises, for your new summer signings, for the reality that the adults – however well qualified – remain in control.