Despite having left the club in 2001, Frank Leboeuf is still considered a legend by a number of Chelsea supporters.
The French defender won a handful of trophies during his stint at Stamford Bridge, including two FA Cups.
With the Blues about to take on Southampton in the competition at the weekend, Sports Mole caught up with the ESPN analyst to talk the FA Cup, Demba Ba and the possible managerial appointment of Pep Guardiola in the summer.
How surprised were you by Wednesday's defeat to Queens Park Rangers? Would it be fair to say that the result has ended Chelsea's title hopes, as slender as they were?
"Well, I was surprised because we thought and saw that something was getting better in the way that the team was moving. Wednesday was like three steps back and suddenly nothing seems right. Players were losing their temper and everybody is now asking 'what has gone wrong?'
"People were beginning to say 'Benitez should get a full job' and now everything is back to 'Benitez should go and half of the players should go'. I think that we have to calm down. What they lost is the race for the title, that's for sure. When you lose at home to QPR, and with all due respect I am judging Chelsea and not QPR, it's impossible to think that you can win the title. You can have a bad night, but at least you draw. You cannot afford to lose to bottom of the league at home. At the end of the day it has made the FA Cup more interesting."
Has that put extra significance on Chelsea winning the FA Cup this season then?
"They still have the Europa League as well and winning the Europa League is something and it is nice. Domestically, I think after the title, the FA Cup is the biggest [trophy]. I don't think it will change the future of Benitez or the players, but for the fans it is important that every year you win something. The FA Cup is a beautiful competition."
One player that could make his Chelsea debut in the FA Cup is Demba Ba. What do you make of his arrival and do you think he will settle in?
"First I think it is a bargain – especially for a player that has scored so many goals for Newcastle and has been their main player. There are still some question marks though. How will he cope at a big club? Newcastle is a big club that are struggling right now to get results, but he will be between big stars at Chelsea. Whether Demba Ba will find his own room or not, I don't know. I know his quality and his motivation, but I don't know his mental strength. If he has all three, he will be successful at Chelsea. If psychologically he is going to be drawn in by the presence of other players, he's going to struggle."
How will Ba's presence alter the role of Fernando Torres? Will it lighten the goalscoring burden off of his shoulders a little bit?
"There have always been question marks over Torres's psychological aspects. We saw last year and the year before when competing against Didier Drogba it was a problem for him. If Demba Ba starts scoring goals every time he plays, it's going to be a problem for Torres. For the good of Chelsea it would be good to see Ba and Torres scoring, but I don't think they can play as a pair so Benitez will have to make choices. Then we will see how they react."
As mentioned earlier, Chelsea will travel to Southampton in the third round of the FA Cup. Chelsea are the favourites but how wary will they have to be of the Saints?
"You can have surprises every year – it is the beauty of that competition. Everybody can beat everybody. It's special because it is one game and if you are not ready you are going to get knocked out.
"Southampton are playing really well. They are not getting the results that I think they have deserved. The way that they play football is the way that I understand football. It's the way I like it. It's not going to be easy for Chelsea because they will have to fight hard. It's a big competition and if you don't fight and give 100% against what you think is a lesser team, you're going to get smashed."
If Benitez can guide Chelsea to success in the FA Cup and Europa League, do you think that there is any chance he could join the club permanently?
"It seems to be that we are rewinding back to Roberto Di Matteo! I don't think so. At the end of the day Di Matteo was offered a two-year contract to please the fans and the media. But in Roman Abramovich's head it was: 'If you make a mistake or don't get results, you're out of here.' That is going to be the same for Benitez, but he won't offer him another contract. I'm pretty sure that [Abramovich] has another option for June. That is why he only handed a temporary contract to Benitez. Like everybody, I don't know more than what we see, but also like everybody I think he wants Pep Guardiola."
Is Guardiola the man that you would like to see with that charge?
"Of course, but you can't guarantee that Guardiola will do well at Chelsea like he did Barcelona. This is because Barcelona was his home town, he knew the club and he was created by them as a player. That made it easier for him as a coach.
"I know Pep because we shared lots of time when we were in Qatar. He's a fantastic guy, really smart and very clever. He has a fantastic personality, but as a coach what are going to be his strengths at Chelsea at a club which has had inconsistency in the coaching situation since Jose Mourinho left? If Guardiola has the time to build, I think he has a very good chance to be powerful and successful."
Having only managed Barcelona so far and having some of the best players in the world at his disposal, do you think Guardiola would have something to prove at Chelsea?
"All the people with the bad thoughts will say: 'Okay, he did that with the best players in the world, it was easy for him, he came from Barcelona and even my grandmother could manage them!' But I know he is a talented guy and prepares the team very well in the dressing room. Now, what works one day, might not work another day – that's football and that's why we love it.
"If you think that Sir Alex Ferguson would be successful everywhere, you're wrong. That is the same for Guardiola. If he comes to Chelsea I wish him the very best [of luck] because I am a Chelsea fan and I love Guardiola, but I know there is always a gamble behind any decision in football."
Going back to the FA Cup - you won it twice as player. How does that rate alongside winning the World Cup and European Championships with France?
"It's always been hard to rank the two because the FA Cup is a fantastic souvenir for me. Of the course the World Cup is the World Cup but in terms of emotion, happiness is happiness. You can't rank happiness. I think you can rank sadness, but not happiness and I was very, very happy winning the FA Cup.
"Chelsea hadn't won anything for 26 years and for France it was the first time as well. Media-wise it is bigger to win the World Cup but emotionally I have to put the two titles at the same rank. Being at Wembley, especially at the old stadium, I felt the creation of football there. That was unbelievable. You felt that you were in the middle of something special there."
Do you have a favourite out of the two?
"1997 for sure because it was the first time and because the atmosphere in the dressing room was fantastic. It was pretty much a nightmare in 2000 because of things that will always stay in the dressing room. I wasn't happy in 2000 and we won it because we were very professional but the atmosphere wasn't good. It was another club as well. We were more of a family in 1997 and were building an era. We were more confirmed in 2000 and the pressure was a lot bigger. Chelsea became a big club in 2000 and it was more business than pleasure."
ESPN will air live and exclusive coverage of three FA Cup Third Round games this weekend. Swansea City vs. Arsenal at 1pm and Mansfield Town vs. Liverpool at 3.45pm on Sunday, then Cheltenham vs. Everton at 7pm on Monday. Visit ESPN.co.uk/tv for details.
Liam Apicella
