ONLY last Thursday in a one-on-one interview with the Evening Post, Hans Backe spoke passionately about his ambition as Notts County manager.

He revealed too, one of the Magpies' greatest-ever players, Don Masson, was his idol when he was a kid.

Backe used to tune-in to watch English football every Saturday night when it was screened in Sweden and loved watching Masson, who memorably captained the club from the old Division Four into Division One.

Backe wanted to fulfil the very same vision only in the modern day, by taking Notts from League Two and into the Premier League.

It was the ambition of the Magpies' owners at the time, Munto Finance, to get the club back into the big time that lured the former FC Copenhagen and Panathinaikos manager to Meadow Lane on a three-year deal at the end of October.

And if he achieved it, Backe said it would represent the greatest achievement of his entire managerial career, eclipsing even his famous feats with Copenhagen, where he won three top-flight league titles and the Danish Cup to become the most successful manager in the club's history. He still is today.

Six days ago, Backe was intent on emulating the most successful manager in the Magpies' history, Jimmy Sirrel.

Instead, he will quickly be forgotten, having only been in charge for nine games before resigning yesterday. It is one of the shortest spells of any manager in the club's 147-year history.

On the day he was unveiled as the Magpies' new manager, October 27, the 57-year-old targeted back-to-back promotions into the Championship. In the end, he only managed back-to-back league wins once, against Darlington and Hereford United.

In his nine games in charge, Notts won four times, drew three games and lost twice. The terrible defeat against Accrington at Meadow Lane on Saturday will be the end-note to his inauspicious reign.

So what has changed since last Thursday to prompt Backe's exit?

Well, in keeping with the astonishing level of activity at Meadow Lane since the takeover of the club by Munto Finance back in July, quite a lot.

There is now a new owner, of course, executive chairman Peter Trembling.

He bought the club for £1 from Munto, and so acquired their 90% stake.

On announcing his takeover before the Accrington game on Saturday, Trembling was quite clear about Backe's future – he was staying at Meadow Lane, he was doing a good job and the players enjoyed working under him.

Backe was quite clear too, by the look of it, because 72 hours later he said goodbye to his players before training and left the club.

Trembling insists his vision is exactly the same as Munto's – a place in the Premier League.

With fresh investment, he still believes the club can achieve that, though it will surely be a difficult task, almost impossible perhaps, to attract the millions Munto promised when they gained control at Meadow Lane. Backe clearly did not share Trembling's confidence.

And so, Notts are looking for their third manager of the season. Alone, that must surely be deeply unsettling for the players, who are still expected to win promotion this season.

Inevitably, Backe's departure will cast even further doubts about whether Sven-Goran Eriksson will stay at Meadow Lane because the future of the two close friends appears so inextricably linked.

They worked together for a season at Manchester City, then on the international stage with Mexico. And it was Eriksson who persuaded Backe to come to Meadow Lane to succeed Ian McParland.

Eriksson was at training yesterday morning, as Dave Kevan, who has again been placed in caretaker charge, led the first-team players in their preparations for a vital league game at Bournemouth on Monday night.

Eriksson is now key to everything. While he is at Meadow Lane, it will be inestimably easier to attract major investment because of his worldwide reputation.

Forget Notts being the oldest League club in the world. They are in League Two. Eriksson is, in short, the biggest selling point to investors.

If he goes, well that could well signal the end of the 'project', the five-year plan to get into the Premier League.