Former Chelsea defender Franck Leboeuf has jumped into the bitter spat between Christophe Dugarry and Manchester United legend Patrice Evra.

The pair have traded insults this week, with Marseille fullback Evra claiming Dugarry owed his playing career to Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane.

Lebouef, who played with Dugarry for France, told RMC: "Let him be frustrated by the criticisms of Christophe Dugarry, I can understand him, he answers Duga's career, he has the right, but he attacks his friendships by using someone who has nothing to do with their history, it is completely out of place and very low.

"Evra must understand that his image is not the same in France as a abroad. The French fans keep a picture of someone who was the captain of the French team and they do not want to hear or see him.

"He was the leader of a team from France who showed us catastrophic things for years. He does not have the same aura in France as abroad and it irritates him because he thinks he is a very big player."