Chelsea's Manager Enzo Maresca Calls Lead-Up Period as His 'Most Difficult 48 Hours' at the Club

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca remarked that the preparation to the weekend's victory against Everton was "the toughest 48 hours" he has experienced with the London club.

The 44-year-old made a somewhat cryptic comment in his after-game press conference despite earning a 2-0 win at home courtesy of goals from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those three precious points sent Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, potentially lightening the atmosphere following a defeat to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the side's drought without a win to four fixtures.

But, when asked about Gusto's assist and general display, Maresca surprisingly divulged his displeasure over the previous two days within the club.

"How the players are eager to improve has been superb and this is the explanation why I commend them - because with so many issues, they are performing admirably after a difficult week," he said.

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

When pushed further on his meaning, the ex- Leicester City manager added: "Most difficult 48 hours since I joined the club because people didn't support me and the team."

When asked if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he answered: "In general. Overall," before specifying when queried if it was directed towards supporters or the media: "I adore the fans and we are extremely pleased with the fans."

Fitness & Suspension Crisis

Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's persistent injury and disciplinary issues, noting they had been without star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the campaign, in addition to losing key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and striker Liam Delap to a couple of significant injuries.

"I really praise the players and the squad because we played 16 Premier League games, five of them without Moises Caicedo, eleven of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them minus Liam Delap," he explained.

"And this squad, regardless of who is on the pitch, they are doing fantastic. Today was 5 games in 12 days so certainly when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our top player but we play the vast majority of the 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 like people outside to recognize because the work from the players is fantastic."

Chelsea's success over Everton cemented their standing in fourth in the Premier League standings, with a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle scheduled next week.

Speculation Over Maresca's Remark

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

In that timeframe, the Italian had traveled back with his backroom team and players from Bergamo, held a session at Cobham, attended a pre-game news conference where he appeared at ease, and secured a victory over an high-flying Everton side.

It was hard to discern whether any specific media reports had irked him, if online comments were a factor, or if it was something deeper from inside the hierarchy at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca specifically took care to deny that it was an issue related to the club's supporters, a section of which have still have yet to fully embrace him since his arrival from Leicester during July 2024.