Speaking to an Argentinian friend, the writer Jorge Milia, the Pope referred affectionately to Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI as "el viejo" - the old man.
The Pope praised Benedict XVI and said: "I wouldn't even consider giving up the counsel of a person like this, it would be very foolish of me."
Milia, who now lives in Italy, has made public excerpts from a recent phone conversation with the Pope. He said Francis had told him that the changes he was making in the Vatican "has not been easy".
There were many ‘masters' of the Pope here and they have been in their positions for a very long time."
He added that he did not want to live in isolation in the papal palace where generations of popes have been "prisoners" to their secretaries.
"I am the one who decides who I see, not my secretaries," said Francis.