Chelsea interim coach Bruno Saltor said the players would be “sad” after the Premier League club sacked manager Graham Potter as he prepared the team to face Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
Potter was dismissed on Sunday, after a 2-0 home defeat against Aston Villa the previous day.
Big-spending Chelsea, who hired the Englishman to replace Thomas Tuchel in September, have just 10 wins from 28 league games this season and are 11th in the table, 12 points outside the top four.
There have now been 13 managerial departures in the English top flight this season – a new record.
Julian Nagelsmann, who was sacked as Bayern Munich coach last month, is the favorite to be Chelsea's next coach.
Bruno told reporters Monday that Potter's firing was "really difficult on every level, especially emotional."
The Spaniard, who worked under Potter at Brighton before following him to Stamford Bridge, said the players would be sad "because they know what level of a human Graham is".
"He has agreed to work with the club to facilitate a smooth transition," said a Chelsea statement announcing Potter's departure from Stamford Bridge.
When asked what that meant, Bruno said, "Maybe he means I'm here now, just trying to continue the process and just trying to get along as best we can and I think Graham has done a great job.
"Football is a really complicated business and we have to keep going."
Bruno, 42, said the match against fellow strugglers Liverpool on Tuesday would be an opportunity for the Chelsea players to show their quality.
"We represent Chelsea, a club that has an amazing history and is about winning and dominating," he said.
"What we need to do is prepare for the game and preparation helps a lot in terms of performance and that's what the players need to focus on.