Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf has slammed Mason Mount, insisting the midfielder ‘disappeared’ in their defeat by Dinamo Zagreb.

The Blues’ Champions League campaign got off to the worst possible start on Tuesday, with Mislav Orsic’s first-half strike condemning Thomas Tuchel’s side to defeat in Croatia.

England midfielder Mount was one of many Chelsea players off colour in Zagreb and has yet to contribute a goal or assist in seven Blues appearances so far in 2022-23.

And speaking to ESPN in the wake of the defeat, Leboeuf blasted his performance and said he is not involved enough in Chelsea’s play before slamming an ‘appalling’ performance against a ‘very average’ side.

‘I want to talk about Mason Mount. We never talk about that guy because he’s the little boy from Chelsea,’ the 54-year-old said.

‘But I’m sorry, he disappeared. I want to know where the guy is. He’s a fantastic player, he has all the talent, but his involvement into the team is not enough, like any others.

‘That was an appalling performance against a very average team.’

Mount spoke to BT Sport after Chelsea’s defeat and admitted every member of Tuchel’s squad must look at themselves.

‘We have to be brutally honest with ourselves, it’s not good enough,’ he said. ‘It’s the first game of the Champions League and we need to make a good start.

‘We started the game well but we let it slip away and that’s happened over the last couple of games and that’s something we need to look at. It’s disappointing.

‘[There was a] lack of concentration, too easy to give the goal away and they make it 1-0. At our level it’s very difficult to get back into the game when you’re 1-0 down, especially in the Champions League.

‘Away from home we need to deal with that better. It’s a difficult one. We start well, if we get that first goal the game is totally different and we feel that we dominate.

‘It’s not good enough, we’re Chelsea. We need to up our standards, every single player needs to look at themselves and will do that.

‘We need to come back in the next game with that fire, desire that we’ve shown over the last few years to win games and the performances that we know we can provide.’

The Blues were an impressive defensive unit at the start of Tuchel’s tenure, but have kept just one clean sheet in seven matches this season.

They have scored just eight goals this season too and Mount admits confidence has consequently suffered.

‘If you’re going through a difficult period it’s natural that confidence isn’t at its highest,’ Mount added.

‘We know we need to keep working hard and get through it as a team.’