Chelsea's Boss Enzo Maresca Describes Lead-Up Time as His 'Most Difficult 48 Hours' at the Club
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca revealed that the preparation to the weekend's win against Everton constituted "the toughest 48 hours" he has experienced at Stamford Bridge.
The Italian delivered a rather mysterious statement in his after-game interview even after notching a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge courtesy of strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.
Those crucial points lifted Chelsea back into the English top flight's top four, potentially lightening the mood after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the team's drought without a win to four matches.
However, when questioned about Gusto's contribution and overall performance, Maresca surprisingly divulged his displeasure over the preceding two days within the club.
"How the lads are eager to develop has been excellent and this is the explanation why I commend them - because with so many problems, they are performing admirably after a complicated week," he commented.
"From the moment I arrived at the club, the previous 48 hours have been the worst because many people didn't support us."
When pushed further on his meaning, the ex- Leicester City boss added: "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 internally at Chelsea, he responded: "In general. Overall," before clarifying when queried if it was aimed at supporters or the press: "I adore the fans and we are very pleased with the fans."
Fitness and Disciplinary Woes
Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's ongoing injury and disciplinary issues, remarking they had been missing key forward Cole Palmer for much of the campaign, in addition to being deprived of key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and striker Liam Delap to two significant injuries.
"I really praise the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, five of them minus Moises Caicedo, eleven of them minus Cole Palmer, nearly every one of them without Liam Delap," he explained.
"And this squad, no matter who is playing, they are doing exceptionally. Today was 5 games in 12 days so certainly when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our finest player but we play the vast majority of the season minus our best player.
"We play five games in the Premier League without 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 work from the players is outstanding."
Chelsea's win over Everton strengthened their position in 4th place in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league journey to Newcastle to come in the coming days.
Speculation Over Maresca's Remark
It was not immediately clear who or what prompted Maresca to describe the previous 48 hours as the worst of his spell as Chelsea manager.
In that window, the coach had traveled back with his staff and players from his native Italy, held a training session at Cobham, faced a pre-match press briefing where he appeared relaxed, and engineered a win over an in-form Everton side.
It was not obvious whether any particular press stories had irked him, if social media discourse were a factor, or if it was something deeper from within the hierarchy at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca only sought to rule out that it was an issue related to the club's fans, a section of which have not yet fully warm to him since his arrival from Leicester during July 2024.