Interim Chelsea manager Calum McFarlane says he’s “gutted” that things did not work out for Liam Rosenior after he was sacked less than four months into the job.
Rosenior was dismissed in the aftermath of Chelsea’s dismal 3-0 defeat at Brighton on Tuesday - their fifth league defeat on the bounce without scoring a goal, taking the club to a 114-year low.
McFarlane insisted that he has a lot of respect for the former manager and revealed that the pair had a phone call on the day of his exit.
"I spoke to him,” he said. “I am not sure how he has done that [spoken to the players] or how that has been done. I've spoken to him on the phone on Wednesday. He was good, it was a good conversation.
“I have a lot of respect for Liam, I didn't know him before he came to the club, he welcomed me in brilliantly. I have a great relationship with him and I am gutted it didn't work out."
McFarlane refused to go into depth on what went wrong under Rosenior and said that he has not held a “clear-the-air meeting” with the players as he embarks on his second stint as interim boss this season.
He took charge for two games following the departure of Enzo Maresca in January, with his maiden outing seeing Chelsea snatch a late draw away at Manchester City.
But the stakes are even higher for his return fixture as he leads Chelsea into their FA Cup semi-final clash with Leeds, something he is tunnel-visioned on.
“We have got the group focused for Sunday,” he added. “Spoken about the game plan and how we are going to approach the game both in and out of possession. It's important we have a real focus for the game on Sunday.
“We can't be thinking about anything else, what's gone on in the past doesn't need to be spoken about. It's just everything geared towards Sunday."
The 40-year-old has been dealt an early injury blow, however, with Estevao ruled out for the season after scans confirmed the extent of his hamstring injury was worse than feared.
“Estevao unfortunately won't play for us this season. He is going to be out for a little bit of time. We're here to support him,” McFarlane said.
Asked on his chances of making fitness for the World Cup, he added: “I'm not sure on that if I'm honest. He won't be available for us. I'm sure he's very hopeful he can make the World Cup but I don't know on that.”
McFarlane also provided a positive update on the fitness of Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer, who were both absent against Brighton with a thigh and hamstring injury respectively.
“They trained, they're in a good place,” he said. “We don't know yet [on whether they will play against Leeds, we'll make a call tomorrow.”