Where now for Harry Kewell's managerial career?

Ten weeks. Seventy-three days. It’s a short period of time, but long enough to be productive.

In that period, Boeing could knock out a couple of 747s, contestants on The Block are sourcing their final bathroom fixtures and fittings, and a football manager is getting a handle on which members of their squad aren’t quite up to the task.

Unless, of course, you’re Notts County. In which case, you give the boot to your manager, Harry Kewell, citing “things quite simply not working out for him.” Fleeting Tinder relationships have lasted longer.

On the face of it, Kewell’s record seems particularly uninspiring. Fourteen games and three wins are not numbers that make up a successful side. When the Socceroos legend took over, the Magpies were in the League Two relegation zone. They now sit one place and three points above said zone.

But if Kewell can feel hard done by there’s two curious questions here. Firstly why did chairman Alan Hardy hire him if he was such a bad fit? And why did Kewell make the decision to leave Crawley Town in the first place?

Harry Kewell of Australia during his playing days (Sean Garnsworthy/ALLSPORT)

Since leaving Australia as a teenager, Kewell has never been a man to take the easy option, but his decision to jump from mid-table Crawley to relegation-threatened County felt like a risky move to make.

If Kewell turned the Magpies around, he would undoubtedly be linked with bigger clubs. But fail in the unforgiven managerial graveyard that is the fourth tier of English football, and there’s no guarantee another side would take a risk on the Australian.

Kewell’s record at Crawley was unspectacular, with 18 wins in 57 games, but unspectacular was probably what the Red Devils needed at that point in time. A safe mid-table finish was respectable for a team who had flirted with relegation in previous seasons, and gave Kewell a platform to build on for 2018-19.

While there may have been grumblings from the Broadfield faithful about a less-than-inspiring style of play, and occasional bafflement about benches and substitutions, the general sense was Crawley were perfectly happy with Kewell and understood two things.

Firstly, that the manager needed time to build the squad he wanted, and secondly, Kewell would have ambitions to move onto bigger and better sides.

In short, it was a safe, low-risk space. Have a relatively successful second season with Crawley, leave them in a better place then when he found them, combined with his name and a solid reputation, and Kewell could rightly expect a call from a side in the division above. Even if Crawley stood still, outside expectations would be modest.

In that respect, it was no surprise when a bigger side came calling. What was a surprise was that Kewell decided his ambition was better realised at Notts County. Yes, the Magpies may be the oldest Football League club, and have spent a spell in the top flight, but in recent years they’ve only ever been one sacking or tax bill away from a crisis. At the time they were firmly in the relegation zone following a disastrous start to the season.

Kewell’s predecessor was Kevin Nolan, a former Premier League midfielder who was liked for his geniality but perceived by fans to be too friendly with the players and not astute enough to set his team up properly. Despite reaching the playoffs the season before, County were listing badly, with many key players underperforming, and it was no surprise that Nolan was handed his P45.

Harry Kewell fronts the media. (AAP Image/David Crosling)

Ten weeks later Kewell was also gone, and while it’s fair to say he was hardly popular at Meadow Lane, there was a general sense of bewilderment at his sacking. As with any manager who inherits a side towards the bottom of the league, there are player, tactical and cultural issues to resolve. For any manager, let along one with no relegation battle experience such as Kewell, who has always given the impression that you’re either with him or can get out and start walking.

While County didn’t exactly get that new manager bounce, results have improved a touch than under Nolan. There have been plenty of draws, a few baffling bench selections, but a sense that it was a bit of an improvement than the previous manager. And Kewell was hardly in the category of Les Reed or Felix Magath (the Fulham era) bad, so if his reign was as catastrophic as Alan Hardy claimed, his appointment makes little sense and reflects badly on those who hired him.

As an act, Kewell’s sacking probably says more about Notts County’s current malaise than it does about their now-departed manager. But the whole episode says plenty about Kewell’s ambition.

Attractive as it may have been to try and revive a famous old name, better managers than Kewell have tried and failed. Meanwhile, Crawley Town sit comfortably in mid-table.

Quite where this leaves Harry Kewell the manager is anyone’s guess. One sacking doesn’t mean the end of a career, but it does close a few doors that would have otherwise been open, and there’s only so far he can trade on his name in the lower leagues of English football.

There will be other jobs, other opportunities, and other chairmen willing to shake a sprinkle of Socceroos stardust on their teams, but if Kewell wants to his managerial career to reach the heights of his playing career, he still has to prove his mettle as a manager. And the question as to whether it’s a vocation he’s actually any good at or not is currently impossible to answer.