The Coach's Critical Error? Taking On The Executives and the Unassailable Leadership Class

Iturns out Ruben Amorim endured defeat by Grimsby. He weathered an important European final versus a particularly poor Spurs sides in living memory. He could survive losing at home to West Ham and Wolves, finishing 15th, an unwavering system, undermining some of the club’s best academy products, the 32% win rate, labeling his team the worst the club has ever seen. But there was one adversary with whom the Portuguese coach would not be allowed to dance. If you challenge Jason Wilcox, you had better succeed.

In truth, this whole painful saga appears to portray Jason Wilcox in a whole new light. It may have been tempting, given his nine months in a similar role at Southampton, to regard Jason Wilcox as little more than a functionary in the United exoskeleton: an individual who owed his position largely to his friendship with ex-colleague Omar Berrada rather than any demonstrable skill. How mistaken everyone was. In brilliantly outsmarting the club's celebrated head coach, as he outmanoeuvred the hapless Dan Ashworth before him, he has proved himself to be among the sport’s true generals: a tactical intellect of which United’s competitors will now be rightly wary.

A Strategic Clash Over Formation & Philosophy

To illustrate, it was Jason Wilcox , after having been part of the hierarchy that appointed the rigid 3-4-3 advocate Amorim in the first place, was instrumental in attempting to convince him to ditch his beloved formation. Unsurprisingly, these entreaties were resisted. However, such directives carry more weight when delivered by a man with the impeccable football pedigree he possesses, 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 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. But Jason Wilcox speaks rarely in public, for excellent reasons. The true intellectuals in football – individuals such as Jason Wilcox – simply operate on a plane beyond our own mundane comprehension. If he ever did speak, probably all we would hear is a series of ultrasonic blips and four-dimensional whirring. Wanting is not quite the same as being prepared to receive.

The Supreme Power Behind Command

But of course, by focusing our attention on the sporting director we are obscuring the true genius behind the club's current leadership. Jason Wilcox is, after all, simply carrying out the directives of his ultimate superior the billionaire owner, who in private has made very clear his desire for a four-man defense. According to reports, the owner has also suggested deploying the forward as a right wing-back. Ratcliffe is keen for United to embrace data science and analytics. According to ESPN, in an executive meeting soon after his minority ownership, he announced that the team's approach of play “shall be determined by this group”.

Ultimately, Sir Jim is an expert in this technical footballing stuff, drawing from his background in petrochemicals and yachting. Above all he is immensely wealthy, and as we all know, the rich are superior: more insightful, sagacious, strategically brilliant, simply superior. Whom else could one trust to oversee a strategic plan of cost-cutting, the building of a new stadium that appears similar to someone’s leftover knitting, the signing of a new striker?

The Modern Football Order: Directors Above Coaches

This represents a shift we are increasingly seeing in top-tier of the game. For decades, clubs foolishly entrusted major sporting choices to subordinate staff like managers, scouts – even footballers. Perhaps it was once feasible for an up-and-coming, visionary coach with ideas and drive to go into a club and implement their plan supported to fruition. Yet how many businesses have such individuals set up? What number of large-scale layoffs have they overseen? Better by far to invest genuine authority where it belongs: the leadership tier, the open-necked shirt brigade, the guys with the jaw-dropping professional resumes. Better by far to determine the tactics in the boardroom and appoint a coach who can tailor their methods accordingly. If managers were formerly chefs, they are now more akin to delivery personnel: not responsible for the food, but still ultimately answerable should it be delivered poorly or leaks out to meet standards.

Nowadays, a coach's role is increasingly less about crafting the philosophy and more about selling it: the front-facing representative of the operation, the visible figurehead for a club they have minimal power to change. Enzo Maresca leads a team of literal children into the Champions League and wins domestic cups, and essentially is dismissed for speaking out. A manager at Celtic sees his reputation ruined while those individuals who appointed him continue to make errors indefinitely.

The Neoliberal Game: Accountability Only for the Coaches

And perhaps in a small way this is simply neoliberalism in action: the rise of a gilded overclass who are infallible, whose decisions are always sacrosanct, whose mistakes can invariably be resolved by sacking without justification. Appoint the 3-4-3 coach only to dismiss him for using excessively that system. Bring in the process guy and later discard him for requiring excessive time. And most importantly be grateful; for your modest season ticket price rises, for the latest player acquisitions, for the fact that the adults – regardless of their expertise – remain in control.