Chelsea's Boss Maresca Describes Lead-Up Time as The 'Toughest 48 Hours' at the Blues

Chelsea tactician Enzo Maresca revealed that the preparation to Saturday's victory against Everton was "the toughest 48 hours" he has experienced with the London club.

The Italian delivered a rather mysterious comment in his post-match press conference even after earning a 2-0 win at home thanks to finishes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those crucial points propelled Chelsea back into the English top flight's top four, perhaps improving the mood following a defeat to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the team's drought without a win to consecutive outings.

However, when questioned about Gusto's assist and general display, Maresca unexpectedly divulged his annoyance over the preceding two days within the organization.

"The way the squad are eager to improve has been fantastic and this is the explanation why I praise them - because with so many challenges, they are excelling after a complicated week," he commented.

"Since I joined the club, the past 48 hours have been the toughest because a lot of people withheld support from us."

When pushed further on what he meant, the ex- Leicester City boss 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: "Broadly speaking. In general," before specifying when queried if it was directed towards supporters or the press: "I love the fans and we are extremely content with the fans."

Fitness & Suspension Crisis

Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's persistent injury and suspension issues, remarking they had been missing key forward Cole Palmer for a large portion of the season, in addition to being deprived of key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-match 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, eleven of them minus Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap," he said.

"And this squad, no matter who is on the pitch, they are doing exceptionally. Today was five games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer available, we said many times that he's our finest player but we play the vast majority of the season without our best player.

"We play 5 games in the Premier League without Moises Caicedo. This is the reason why I'm so pleased for the players and it's something that I would like people outside to appreciate because the work 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 trip to Newcastle scheduled in the coming days.

Speculation Regarding Maresca's Remark

It was not immediately clear what exactly caused Maresca to describe the previous 48 hours as the most difficult of his spell as Chelsea head coach.

In that period, the Italian had returned with his backroom team and players from his native Italy, conducted a session at the training ground, faced a pre-match news conference where he seemed at ease, and secured a win over an high-flying Everton side.

It was not obvious whether any particular press stories had unsettled him, if social media discourse played a role, or if it was something deeper from within the club at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca specifically took care to rule out that it was an issue involving the club's fans, some of whom have still have yet to fully embrace him since his appointment from Leicester during July 2024.