Chelsea's Manager Maresca Labels Lead-Up Period as The 'Worst Two Days' with the Blues
Chelsea tactician Enzo Maresca revealed that the preparation to Saturday's win against Everton constituted "the worst 48 hours" of his tenure with the London club.
The Italian delivered a puzzling comment in his after-game media briefing even after earning a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge courtesy of goals from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.
Those three precious points propelled Chelsea once again into the Premier League's top four, potentially improving the mood following a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the side's winless run to consecutive matches.
However, when asked about the full-back's contribution and overall display, Maresca unexpectedly disclosed his displeasure over the preceding two days within the organization.
"How the squad are eager to learn has been superb and this is the reason why I applaud them - because with so many issues, they are doing very well after a tricky week," he said.
"Since I joined the club, the last 48 hours have been the toughest because a lot of people failed to back us."
When pushed further on his meaning, the ex- Leicester City manager continued: "Most difficult 48 hours since I came to the club because people didn't support me and the team."
When asked if he meant people within at Chelsea, he responded: "In general. Overall," before clarifying when queried if it was directed towards supporters or the press: "I love the fans and we are very content with the fans."
Fitness and Suspension Crisis
Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's persistent fitness and suspension issues, noting they had been missing key forward Cole Palmer for much of the campaign, in addition to being deprived of linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and forward Liam Delap to two significant injuries.
"I truly applaud the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, 5 of them without Moises Caicedo, 11 of them minus Cole Palmer, nearly every one of them without Liam Delap," he said.
"And this squad, no matter who is playing, they are performing brilliantly. Today was five games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our top player but we play the vast majority of the season without our top player.
"We play five games in the Premier League minus Moises Caicedo. This is the reason why I'm so delighted for the players and it's something that I would want people outside to recognize because the effort from the players is outstanding."
Chelsea's success over Everton strengthened their position in 4th place in the Premier League standings, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league journey to Newcastle to come next week.
Speculation Over Maresca's Remark
It was unclear who or what caused Maresca to label the previous 48 hours as the most difficult of his time as Chelsea head coach.
In that period, the coach had returned with his backroom team and players from his native Italy, held a training session at Cobham, faced a pre-match press briefing where he seemed relaxed, and engineered a win over an in-form Everton team.
It was hard to discern whether any specific press stories had irked him, if social media discourse played a role, or if it was something more significant from inside the club at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca specifically took care to deny that it was an issue involving the club's fans, a section of which have still have yet to fully embrace him since his arrival from Leicester in July last year.
