The Boss Enzo Maresca Labels Lead-Up Time as His 'Worst Two Days' with the Club

Chelsea gaffer Enzo Maresca revealed that the run-up to the weekend's win against Everton was "the most challenging 48 hours" since his arrival at Stamford Bridge.

The Italian offered a rather mysterious statement in his after-game interview even after notching a 2-0 win at home thanks to strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those points lifted Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, potentially improving the mood following a defeat to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the team's winless run to consecutive matches.

But, when questioned about the full-back's assist and general performance, Maresca surprisingly shared his displeasure over the preceding 48-hour period within the organization.

"How the squad are eager to develop has been fantastic and this is the reason why I applaud them - because with numerous problems, they are doing very well after a difficult week," he said.

"Since I joined the club, the past 48 hours have been the worst because many people failed to back us."

Pressed on his meaning, the former Leicester City manager elaborated: "Worst 48 hours since I came to the club because people didn't support me and the team."

When asked if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he replied: "In general. In general," before specifying when asked if it was aimed at supporters or the media: "I adore the fans and we are extremely content with the fans."

Fitness & Suspension Crisis

Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's persistent fitness and suspension problems, noting they had been missing star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the season, as well as losing linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and forward Liam Delap to a couple of significant injuries.

"I really applaud the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, 5 of them minus Moises Caicedo, 11 of them minus Cole Palmer, almost all of them minus Liam Delap," he said.

"And this squad, no matter who is playing, they are performing fantastic. Today was 5 games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer available, we have said many times that he's our top player but we play almost all season without our top player.

"We play five 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 want people externally to acknowledge because the effort from the players is fantastic."

Chelsea's triumph over Everton strengthened their position in 4th place in the Premier League standings, with a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle scheduled next week.

Speculation Regarding Maresca's Comments

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

In that timeframe, the Italian had returned with his backroom team and players from Bergamo, held a session at Cobham, faced a pre-game news conference where he appeared relaxed, and secured a victory over an in-form Everton side.

It was not obvious whether any particular media reports had unsettled him, if online discourse were a factor, or if it was something more significant from within the hierarchy at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca specifically took care to rule out that it was an matter involving the club's fans, a section of which have still have yet to fully warm to him since his appointment from Leicester during July 2024.