In football and in life, reactions are sometimes surprising and important. The other day in a chat with a Chelsea fan I, like many others have, talked about an out-and-out centre-forward who worked hard, ran the line and was a natural world-class goal scorer. The quickfire answer was, ‘Yes, but we’ve got Sam Kerr haven’t we.’ Good answer, and Sam was at it again along with her team-mates, giving cheer to all Chelsea fans at the weekend after what has been a difficult season in many parts of the club.

So first and foremost, congratulations to the women’s team for winning yet another FA Cup final at Wembley. I decided not to move the conversation on to recruiting a world-class full-time manager, as doubtless the answer would have been, ‘What about Emma Hayes?’ I wasn’t willing to go 2-0 down in the first two minutes of that particular debate.

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The only slight downside for Emma and her team was that their glorious Chelsea story was soon being eclipsed in the media by the suggestions that a new manager might be imminent for the men.

All-important balance

When that post is eventually officially filled there is quite a job of work to be done, but it will be clear that putting Chelsea back as contenders again will be the expectation in a decently shortish amount of time.

It is still a tall order to do that right away, considering how far we have slipped down the table, but it is far from impossible. Few would argue that there is a lack of talent in the squad, especially when you include those whose loan periods are just about to finish.

We do need a manager who is clearly excited about some of the young players we have at the club, and about his own ability to develop them into a coherent and well-balanced unit.

Certain managers like to come to a top club, buy a whole bunch of ready-made top-class players and go from there. Some can do this well but for others that is almost secondary to the joy of maximising the talent of emerging footballers that can be moulded a bit and allowed to flourish. The best managers can do both jobs simultaneously.

The new coach will decide what he needs to do at the club right away. From developing the players he wants, to allowing those he feels he doesn’t need to go. He also has to pinpoint a few that he feels the club could acquire that will help the all-important balance that any squad needs.

Certainty and an assured direction is vital now. If the next manager’s name is officially announced soon it will give him a worthwhile period to look at and consider the current squad. He will then have an entire summer, pre-season included, to plan his strategies. These few extra weeks could make a huge difference.

What we want to see

When he does get the nod, he will be looking for reactions from a variety of players. There will be uncertainty from some about whether or not they will be wanted by the new coach, but that is just the nature of the beast. Football is ultracompetitive at this level, you have to accept and embrace it.

Last week I wrote about how I hoped Raheem Sterling would react to fans who showed him their disappointment down at Bournemouth. I think he has shown exactly the right attitude since that difficult moment. The assist as sub against the Cherries was delicious and then scoring both goals against Forest was the icing then the cherry itself on the top of the cake. It is at exactly what I, and more importantly the fans, and then crucially what the next manager at the club wants to see.

He will need to know who is able to change and improve from this season, and be capable of adapting to a new regime with a positive attitude.

For all the flux, I am still looking forward to the next few games, they will be an incredible test of attitude. Manchester City, Newcastle United and Manchester United are sitting first, third and fourth in the league and they are each still fighting for something important. Any prospective new manager will get a great insight into how much has to be done and who can come along for the ride, because this is the standard we must gauge ourselves against and get back to. In some ways they are almost the perfect games in that respect.

Manchester City themselves will possibly be able to win the league against us on Sunday, even if it could be done and dusted before they pitch up there. I do recall one time another team won the top division with a game against Chelsea, because I was playing. It was Liverpool and Kenny Dalglish scored the winner in a tight 1-0 win for them back in the mid-1980s. For all his gleeful smiles and the fact that we had to appear magnanimous afterwards, it was horrible having someone else celebrating on our pitch.

So if Arsenal do beat Forest on Saturday to keep their faint title hopes alive, I still want us to go for City. As professionals with pride I know our players will, even if one or two Chelsea fans will have some guilty pleasure if it finally officially slips out of Arsenal's hands. Fans are allowed to have their own reactions.