Chelsea's Manager Enzo Maresca Labels Lead-Up Period as His 'Most Difficult Two Days' at the Club
Chelsea gaffer Enzo Maresca revealed that the preparation to the weekend's victory against Everton constituted "the most challenging 48 hours" of his tenure with the London club.
The 44-year-old made a puzzling message in his after-game interview even after notching a 2-0 win at home through goals from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.
Those three precious points lifted Chelsea back into the Premier League's top four, perhaps lightening the atmosphere after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the side's winless run to consecutive outings.
However, when questioned about Gusto's assist and general display, Maresca surprisingly disclosed his frustration over the previous 48-hour period within the club.
"How the squad are eager to improve has been excellent and this is the explanation why I commend them - because with so many problems, they are excelling after a tricky week," he said.
"Since I joined the club, the past 48 hours have been the worst because many people withheld support from us."
When pushed further on his meaning, the former Leicester City manager added: "Most difficult 48 hours since I joined the club because people failed to back me and the team."
When asked if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he responded: "In general. In general," before clarifying when asked if it was aimed at fans or the press: "I adore the fans and we are very pleased with the fans."
Injury & Disciplinary Crisis
Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's ongoing fitness and suspension problems, noting they had been missing star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the season, in addition to being deprived of linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and forward Liam Delap to two serious injuries.
"I truly commend the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, 5 of them minus Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them minus Liam Delap," he said.
"And this squad, regardless of who is playing, they are doing brilliantly. Today was 5 games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer there, we said many times that he's our finest player but we play almost all season without our top player.
"We play five games in the Premier League minus Moises Caicedo. This is the explanation why I'm so pleased for the players and it's something that I would want people externally to recognize because the effort from the players is outstanding."
Chelsea's success over Everton consolidated their position in fourth in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup last-eight clash 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 past 48 hours as the worst of his time as Chelsea head coach.
In that window, the coach had traveled back with his backroom team and players from his native Italy, conducted a session at the training ground, attended a pre-game press briefing where he appeared at ease, and engineered a victory over an in-form Everton team.
It was not obvious whether any specific press stories had unsettled him, if online discourse were a factor, or if it was something deeper from within the club at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca specifically took care to deny that it was an matter related to the club's supporters, some of whom have not yet fully warm to him since his appointment from Leicester during July 2024.