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Former back row Peter Anglesea has been handed the reigns until the end of the season but his first game in charge didn't bring the response the club's hierarchy were after as Sale shipped eight tries in a league defeat to Leicester.
And now Anglesea is hoping the likes of England stars Mark Cueto, Charlie Hodgson and Andrew Sheridan will take on important leadership roles as the Sharks look to climb up the Aviva Premiership and reach the quarter-finals of the Amlin Challenge Cup.
"The leadership skills of Mark Cueto will be vital to us and we're fortunate enough to have Charlie Hodgson back soon who will be another big influence on how we play," Anglesea told the Manchester Evening News.
"Mark will be captain for the foreseeable future. He has a massive influence in rugby, he's well respected throughout the sport and certainly with the players.
"We'll probably have someone in place to take over while the Six Nations are on but we are looking to Mark to lead the club forward with heart and passion."
Having twice won the Challenge Cup back in 2002 and 2005, the Sharks began this year's campaign with high hopes of a place in the knockout stages but that aim has been severely dented by successive defeats to former Heineken Cup winners Brive.
The club's domestic form has also been disappointing, with Sale only winning three Premiership games so far this season and picking up just 14 points in the process. It's a far cry from the Championship-winning campaign of 2005/06 when Anglesea tasted glory with a comfortable victory over perenial winners Leicester at Twickenham.
In an attempt to turn the club's fortunes around sooner rather than later, Anglesea made a point of immediately speaking to his senior players but he insists Sale are not a club in crisis despite seven league losses already this term.
"The first thing I did after taking charge was to get the senior players on my side because I played with most of them. I thought it was important to get them on board," added Anglesea.
"It wasn't a case of having to go to them. We spoke within an hour of me taking over the role and they were 100 per cent behind me, probably more as a friend than anything. We want to play rugby and we want to enjoy ourselves.
"I'm not picking up a club in pieces - I'm picking up a club that is in a transition period where a new regime is involved,"
"We have got British & Irish Lions, we have got internationals and enough quality to turn it around."
