Adelaide United: Outrage over Marco Kurz’s sacking is a result of broader uncertainty

In football, results are ultimately the best indicator of success.

It’s a competitive industry, and tacticians around the world can find themselves out of work quickly if their vision does not produce fast results.

But this week in the A-League, Adelaide United’s decision not to renew head coach Marco Kurz’s contract has sparked significant confusion.

That’s because, unlike the rest of the football world, in Australia’s top league, results aren’t everything, and there’s no relegation to penalize underperforming teams.

In the end, according to the manager, it was the lack of ‘a common vision for the future of Adelaide United’ that led to a decision to part ways with the club.

“Our goals are very different, so renewing my contract does not make sense,” Kurz said in a statement.

The German’s future has been a huge discussion point for some weeks, and his team is still in a worrying rut. The Reds haven’t won since defeating Brisbane Roar 4-3 in an incredible thriller on February 2. After five matches and 45 days, they have made a choice to break ways with a coach who is widely adored by their fans.

If nothing else, Kurz has passion. His zealous celebrations after that stunning win over the Roar were the talk of social media, with many wishing their club boasted a manager who displayed such emotion in the heat of battle.

But, in the end, he is left to hunt for a new club, and with vacancies at the Central Coast Mariners (if Alen Stajcic does not stay) and Brisbane Roar, he is likely to be in high demand.

Many people have questioned the underlying intentions behind the decision to end Kurz’s tenure at Coopers Stadium, and there are numerous reasons to fire a coach. A philosophical divergence might lead to a coach’s demise, but in the end, supporters and other observers base their views on the broader picture. Essentially, this leads back to results.

So, where does Kurz fit into the overall scheme of A-League coaches?

Numbers crunched by Fox Sports Lab suggest that despite an appearance of success created by a finals finish – and another likely to come this season – and an FFA Cup triumph, the German doesn’t exactly stack up favourably across the competition.

Across his time in the Australia, Kurz is statistically the eighth best coach in the country, excluding Stajcic’s one game at the Mariners.