Leboeuf joined his hometown club Marseille in 2001 after five seasons at Chelsea, making 51 appearances for the French side before leaving for Qatar at the end of his career.
Although Marseille did not win major trophies during his stay, he became a leader in the side who were going through a turbulent time on and off the pitch.
Marseille's expectations were enormous at the time and their poor finishes in the table were treated as catastrophic, leading to constant managerial and leadership changes off the pitch.
Frank Leboeuf spoke exclusively to Tribal Football via BetGoodwin where you can find the latest updates, odds, and news about the World Cup 2026, about his time with the French giants, which was a mixed bag to say the least.
Leboeuf's time at Marseille
How different was your time at Marseille when compared to Chelsea and what did it teach you as a player?
“I came back to Marseille because it's the city where I was born in and my father was ill. He had cancer, so I wanted to get closer to my father. And on top of it, I felt that Mr. Claudio Ranieri made his choice and didn't want me to play anymore and decided to launch John Terry.
“Which was a very good idea for English football, for Chelsea. And I have no regrets and bitterness whatsoever. I think it was only fair. And so I say my time is over. And when Bernard Tapie called me and said, I want you to be the captain of Marseille, that was an honour.
“And I say, well, let's see. I didn't want to play for another English team but for Chelsea. So I decided to go. Marseille was a big mess. That wasn't the Marseille that we have all have seen in the beginning of the '90s.”
“But that wasn't the case for Marseille. I met my coach one day before the training and he said, "I'm very pleased that I have you." And after the training, he said, "Oh, bye-bye, I was very pleased to have you." That was a real story.
“He said goodbye, he was fired after 2 hours of training. And I think I had like 5 coaches in 2 years. And 3 chairmen. So that was a big mess. And the atmosphere was crazy when we were winning games. When we won the Clásico against Paris Saint-Germain, 1-0, that was insane.
"But the pressure was uncomfortable, I would say, to build something with trust and confidence and peace, which was quite impossible because the atmosphere is too strong and the pressure from the fans are too strong. It was perfect at Chelsea, that was a different club, different atmosphere.”
Marseille have not won the league since 2010. Do you think Paris Saint-Germain are too dominant in Ligue 1?
“Yes, they are. First, because they have the money, that's for sure, but on top of it now they got the coach who knew how to create the perfect squad and Luis Enrique has been a magician.
“He knew exactly what he had to do. And it's very bad for Neymar, Messi, and Mbappé, but he knew that he didn't want any stars to build something more coherent and make sure that everybody was working the same way.”
Is Xabi Alonso the right manager for Chelsea?
Leboeuf made 144 appearances for Chelsea, winning two FA Cups, one League Cup, one Cup Winners' Cup and one UEFA Super Cup. His time in the Premier League was the peak of his career and he is still very fond of the club that he helped to so much success.
The Blues, much like Marseille, have been going through a period of change in the past 10 years, which has led to constant managerial sackings and a transfer policy that has been widely ridiculed.
Marseille in the early 2000s was a giant club trying to regain direction after years of instability. Now, Chelsea are a giant side aiming for stability after mass spending and manager swapping.
Chelsea have been using Strasbourg to hone young talent for a number of years now. It is another aspect of their transfer policies, as well as extremely long contracts and signing high-upside players that have been criticised by rivals, but Leboeuf opened up on how it can only benefit both sides.
How do you feel about Strasbourg being a feeder club to Chelsea? Do you think that’s right?
“I think that was a very good idea because Strasbourg needed money and the fans were unhappy. They said, ‘are we going to serve Chelsea?’ Yes, we will.
“But in order to be competitive, and Strasbourg is more competitive than expected, so it's a good thing. And we can see good football because we see good football players who are going to go to Chelsea after.
“But right now, for the past 2 years, it's been absolutely fantastic. And the atmosphere in La Meno is great.
“And if the Chelsea board makes sure that they can provide the player that Strasbourg needs to be competitive, not only to survive and not be relegated, but also to compete. And we saw this season that they were in the semi-final of the Conference League, which is great for that club.”
With Alonso set to step in on July 1st, Leboeuf believes that, alongside the use of Strasbourg as a feeder club, the Spaniard should have full control over transfers if he is to succeed over the coming years.
Is Xabi Alonso the right man for the Chelsea job, and should he have more control over the transfer strategy at the club?
“Yes and yes, he's a great player. He used to be a great player, and he knows football. What he did for Bayer Leverkusen was simply amazing because he had the control and the people in the board allowed him to do whatever he wanted.
“And he did it with cleverness and the guy is one of the smartest guys, like Pep Guardiola as a coach. And if Chelsea wants to achieve something, they have to change their mind. They cannot be in control of the pitch, but they can be in control of the finances and everything going on in the office.
"But when it's about the field, Xabi Alonso should be the only one in charge, and hopefully they're gonna understand that. I'm very pleased that they picked Xabi Alonso. Congratulations to them, good call, I'm pretty sure Xabi Alonso will do very well if he has the control."