Chelsea interim coach Bruno Saltor has revealed that the players are sad after the sacking of manager Graham Potter as he prepares the Blues for their upcoming clash against Liverpool.

The Englishman’s sacking on Sunday came after the Blues fell to a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening.

Big-spending Chelsea, who hired the Englishman to replace Thomas Tuchel in September, are currently 11th in the table with 10 wins from 28 league games, 12 points behind the top four.

This season has seen a record 13 managerial departures in the English Premier League.

Julian Nagelsmann, who was fired as Bayern Munich manager last month, is favoured to become the next Chelsea manager.

Bruno told reporters on Monday that Potter’s dismissal was “extremely challenging on every level, particularly emotionally.”

The Spaniard, who worked under Potter at Brighton before following him to Stamford Bridge, stated that the players would be heartbroken “because they know what kind of person Graham is.”

Chelsea’s statement announcing Potter had left Stamford Bridge also said he had “agreed to collaborate with the club to facilitate a smooth transition”.

When asked what that meant, Bruno said: “Probably means that I’m here right now, just trying to keep the process going and we just try to collaborate the best that we can and I think Graham did an amazing job.

“Football is a really complex business and we have to keep going.”

Bruno, 42, stated that Tuesday’s match against Liverpool would be an opportunity for Chelsea’s players to demonstrate their quality.

“We’re representing Chelsea, a club with an amazing history and it’s about winning, it’s about 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.”