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Luckless Melbourne Heart captain Harry Kewell has suffered yet another setback with an ankle injury ruling him out of Friday’s A-League match with Western Sydney Wanderers.
Just an hour after talking of his hopes of returning to the Socceroos fold with strong club form, Kewell twisted an ankle during an “innocuous” training drill and is expected to miss two weeks.
Melbourne Heart’s manager of football John Didulica said the injury was disappointing.
“The footballing gods haven’t smiled on us,” Didulica said.
“It’s the same drill you do a thousand times over a season but there’s nothing overly serious about the injury, it’s more of a nuisance.”
Named Australia’s greatest player by Football Federation Australia last year, Kewell has less than four hours of competitive soccer under his belt since leaving Melbourne Victory in June 2012.
He suffered whiplash in Heart’s round one match with Victory and was set to return against the Wanderers.
Kewell had defended his decision to play golf after being ruled unfit for selection for last weekend’s 3-0 loss to the Brisbane Roar.
“I felt I was fully fit, I wanted to play, it was a decision by my manager which I respected,” he said.
“OK, I went out and swung a club. What’s the harm in that?”
Heart chief executive Scott Munn said Kewell was entitled to play golf as he had resumed full training.
But when asked about the neck injury, the 35-year-old Kewell was cagey.
“There’s been a few things that have come up and we’ve just dealt with them as private matters; they’re all under control now.
“We just had to take things steady.”
The veteran of 60 internationals knows the only way of fulfilling his dream of playing in a third World Cup is by looking no further than his Melbourne Heart commitments.
It’s a dream that looks further away with every setback.
At the start of Wednesday’s training session he said he was 100 per cent fit but by the end of it, he was behind the eight-ball yet again.
As well as a personal setback for Kewell, it’s yet another blow for the luckless Heart.
The struggling club have endured a difficult start to the campaign, with international marquee signing Orlando Engelaar breaking his leg in the pre-season.
First-choice central defender Patrick Kisnorbo joined Engelaar on the treatment table after suffering a knee injury against Perth Glory last month.
Didulica remained confident that Kewell would eventually shine in the Heart side.
“We think Harry is critical in terms of creativity through the midfield,” he said.
“He’s obviously disappointed right now but he’s a player that has shown huge resilience over a long period of time.
“He’s come back from so many setbacks and shown people he’s a genuine professional.”
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