Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf has slammed their "disgrace" of a team who he reckons would be relegation battlers without Cole Palmer.

The Blues were 6-0 victors over Everton on Monday (April 15), albeit with Palmer starring once again with four goals. His perfect hat-trick inside the first half an hour set them on their way and some before his second-half penalty.

It took his tally for the Premier League season to 20, almost a third of Chelsea's overall, as well as his nine assists. And aside from Palmer's weekly exploits, Leboeuf - who won two FA Cups and a League Cup at Stamford Bridge - has been deeply unimpressed with his former side.

Speaking before the weekend's action, he told Fastest Payout Online Casino: "The club can do whatever they want with their money but as a former player, I think it's kind of a disgrace to see what we are seeing.

"The talent is there in the squad but you don’t have many leaders or players you can rely on, that’s the biggest problem [Mauricio] Pochettino has.

"Chelsea would be in a far worse position if it wasn’t for Cole Palmer and you can see that because he only has three goals less than Erling Haaland. I don't think they could be relegated but they would be fighting against it until the end of the season."

While Chelsea could still win the FA Cup after losing the League Cup final to Liverpool, 50-cap World Cup-winning France centre-back Leboeuf reckons their current crop will never be title challengers as they're missing a key ingredient.

"It’s possible that Chelsea can win a cup, like the FA Cup this season potentially, but never the Premier League. No way," he insisted. "If they keep going the way they’re going then they will never win a Premier League title again.

"They need experience. It just won’t work. When I arrived at the club they had been waiting 26 years for a trophy and that only came to an end when players experienced winners arrived."