Ex-Chelsea captain Andy Townsend insists the club should have appointed John Terry as interim manager.
Liam Rosenior was sacked on Wednesday after just three months in charge following a historically bad run of form.
Liam Rosenior, Manager of Chelsea, acknowledges the fans after the Premier League match between Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea2
Rosenior had truly lost the dressing room by the end of his tenure
The Blues had lost seven of their last eight matches in all competitions, failing to score in their most recent five.
It culminated in a pathetic 3-0 defeat to Brighton which a number of Chelsea voices on talkSPORT described as the worst performance in the club's history.
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola has emerged as the frontrunner to take charge this summer but the Blues still have a season to salvage with a bottom-half finish now a real possibility.
Under-21s boss Calum McFarlane has been given the reins for the second time this season and his first assignment is an FA Cup semi-final against Leeds on Sunday - live on talkSPORT.
But to many people's surprise, academy coach Terry has been overlooked once again.
The legendary defender publicly expressed his disappointment after being snubbed for a place on McFarlane's team when Enzo Maresca was sacked earlier this season.
And speaking on his TikTok channel last night, Terry said: "I am not sure what Calum’s backroom staff is going to look like, I have not had a call, I have not had a message.
"I will be continuing my role in the academy, I will be in the academy tomorrow, a big couple of games coming up.
Irritated Haaland tells reporter: 'I don't know why you keep asking me that'Lamine Yamal in World Cup concern as he suffers freak injury scoring penalty for BarcelonaAndoni Iraola is leading contender for Chelsea job as he responds to question on linksHow much has Liam Rosenior cost Chelsea? Wages and record as Blues boss sacked
"We will all get behind Calum, he did a great job away against Man City previously and we will get behind the boys because that is what we do."
From one captain to another
Ex-Chelsea skipper Townsend believes the current set of players need someone like Terry to implement some tough love.
Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella during a Chelsea match2
Many believe the problem lies within a spoilt and entitled attitude among the Chelsea squad
talkSPORT understands a number of senior players turned on Rosenior in the final stages of his reign, even nicknaming him 'the substitute teacher'.
And Townsend believes the Blues hierarchy, who have faced protests over their running of the club in recent weeks, must stop pandering to 'soft' young players.
"I would have gone right now for John Terry," Townsend told talkSPORT. "Someone like that. To pick the fans up, to try and galvanize the players a little bit, just put a little bit of a spring back in people's steps.
"McFarlane... I'm not sure how much that is going to really inspire those players who looked pretty empty and were staring at their own punters down at Brighton last night."
He added: "I think it wouldn't have done them any harm at all to have got someone in with a bit of clout, a bit of repute, a reputation.
"Someone with a voice that gets everyone to listen. Someone that isn't afraid and someone that doesn't pander to these boys.
"I look at that Chelsea team and I see a load of guys… I think they're being pandered to every five minutes. I really do and I think it's a big problem when you have the amount of players they have and the turnover of players they have.
"I think it's been too much of this arm around shoulders trying to bring players up into a really comfortable environment.
"Top class Premier League and European football is a tough business for tough boys. Chelsea have got a lot of soft boys."
That view was backed up on the talkSPORT Breakfast Show by Gabby Agbonlahor, who played alongside Terry with Aston Villa and England.
Agbonlahor said: "What John Terry has won at that football club... when you say Chelsea, you think John Terry.
"So it's a no-brainer, get him in and around that squad of players, get him speaking to the players, make them understand, 'Guys, this isn't l a small club, this is Chelsea Football Club, liven up'."
Meanwhile, talkSPORT's Inside Chelsea host Olivia Buzaglo insisted Terry's presence in the dressing room would help to stamp out the petulance among the squad.
She said: "I would get JT in the dressing room, not as a manager, but I think people underestimate his impact and these players don't understand what it means to play for such a club like Chelsea, I don't think they get it.
"Would Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella had come out and said what they said if Terry was in that dressing room?"