Chelsea legend Leboeuf insists Potter sack calls are ‘normal human reaction’ as he identifies replacement
Frank Leboeuf says he would be “very happy” to see Zinedine Zidane as the next Chelsea boss as calls grow for the Blues to sack Graham Potter.
There were boos after the final whistle on Saturday as Chelsea lost 1-0 to Premier League bottom side Southampton at Stamford Bridge with calls for Potter to be sacked.
Despite winning just twice in 14 matches in all competitions, the Chelsea hierarchy are firmly behind Potter and have no intention of sacking the manager any time soon.
A report earlier this week claimed that the Chelsea owners have told Potter to ‘don your tin hat and fight’ as the Blues look to get through their current sticky patch.
Zinedine Zidane is one manager out of work if Chelsea decide to sack Potter eventually and Lebouef would be “very happy” with that appointment.
When asked if Zidane would take the job, Leboeuf told ESPN: “I don’t know, but it would be a very good idea I think. I would be very pleased.
“I’ve never asked him if he wanted to go come to England. I asked him if he didn’t speak English, but he responded in English. So, you know, he speaks English a little bit.
“Maybe he could be in charge of Chelsea. I would be very, very happy about that.”
On the current situation at Chelsea, Leboeuf added: “I completely understand the fans frustrations and being fed up right now with the situation. We all love the club and we all want success.
“When you lose twice with one being against bottom of the league, it’s a normal human reaction to get upset. Then asking for Graham Potter to be sacked, but I don’t think it’s the right time.
“We have the second leg against Dortmund coming up, but I think if we lose that and go out the Champions League, then it maybe the time to get rid of Potter and think about bringing in another coach.”
Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton has compared the club’s recruitment to “pin the tail on the donkey” but he’s praised Todd Boehly for sticking by Potter.
“The situation with Potter is that he seems to have been backed by Todd Boehly and I actually quite like that,” Sutton said on the BBC Monday Night Club podcast.
“I do think he’s had a lot to deal with, in terms of so many players coming in and him being uncertain on his best starting line-up, so he’s chopped and changed. You never get continuity when you chop and change.
“I quite like the fact Boehly on the face of it has said, we’re backing you long-term because football is so short-term now. They’ve probably looked at what happened at Arsenal with Mikel Arteta, where all the Arsenal fans wanted him out but they stuck with him and now look where they are. So fair play to Boehly.
“He’s got a lot wrong too, some of their recruitment has been like pin the tail on the donkey but he’s seen something in Graham Potter and he’s going to stick with it.”
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