Chelsea's Manager Enzo Maresca Labels Lead-Up Period as The 'Worst 48 Hours' with the Club
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca remarked that the preparation to Saturday's win against Everton was "the toughest 48 hours" since his arrival at Stamford Bridge.
The 44-year-old delivered a rather mysterious statement in his post-match press conference even after notching a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge thanks to finishes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.
Those points propelled Chelsea back into the English top flight's top four, perhaps lightening the mood after a defeat to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the side's winless run to four fixtures.
But, when questioned about the full-back's assist and overall performance, Maresca unexpectedly divulged his frustration over the previous two days within the club.
"The way the players want to learn has been fantastic and this is the explanation why I praise them - because with so many problems, they are excelling after a complicated week," he commented.
"Since I joined the club, the last 48 hours have been the toughest because several people failed to back us."
Pressed on what he meant, the former Leicester City manager added: "Worst 48 hours since I joined the club because people failed to back me and the team."
When asked if he meant people within at Chelsea, he answered: "Broadly speaking. In general," before clarifying when queried if it was aimed at supporters or the media: "I love the fans and we are extremely content with the fans."
Fitness and Suspension Woes
Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's persistent injury and suspension problems, noting they had been missing key forward Cole Palmer for a large portion of the campaign, in addition to being deprived of linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and forward Liam Delap to two serious injuries.
"I really praise the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, five of them without Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap," he explained.
"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 said many times that he's our finest player but we play almost all season without our best player.
"We play 5 games in the Premier League minus Moises Caicedo. This is the explanation why I'm so delighted for the players and it's something that I would want people outside to appreciate because the effort from the players is remarkable."
Chelsea's win over Everton strengthened their standing in 4th place in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league journey to Newcastle scheduled in the coming days.
Uncertainty Regarding Maresca's Comments
It was not immediately clear what exactly prompted Maresca to label the past 48 hours as the worst of his tenure as Chelsea head coach.
In that period, the coach had traveled back with his backroom team and players from his native Italy, conducted a session at Cobham, attended a pre-game news conference where he appeared at ease, and engineered a victory over an in-form Everton team.
It was not obvious whether any particular press stories had irked him, if social media comments were a factor, or if it was something deeper from inside the club at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca specifically took care to rule out that it was an issue involving the club's supporters, a section of which have not yet fully warm to him since his appointment from Leicester in July last year.
