đź”— Share this article The Manager Maresca Describes Pre-Match Time as The 'Most Difficult Two Days' at the Club Enzo Maresca moved to Chelsea after leaving Leicester in July of last year. Chelsea gaffer Enzo Maresca remarked that the build-up to Saturday's victory against Everton represented "the most challenging 48 hours" since his arrival at Stamford Bridge. The 44-year-old made a puzzling statement in his after-game media briefing even after notching a 2-0 win at home courtesy of strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto. Those points lifted Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, perhaps lightening the mood after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the side's drought without a win to consecutive matches. Yet, when asked about Gusto's assist and overall display, Maresca surprisingly divulged his displeasure over the preceding two days within the club. "How the squad are eager to develop has been superb and this is the reason why I commend them - because with so many issues, they are doing very well after a complicated week," he said. "From the moment I arrived at the club, the previous 48 hours have been the toughest because several people failed to back us." When pushed further on the specifics, the former Leicester City manager continued: "Most difficult 48 hours since I came to the club because people didn't support me and the team." When questioned if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he replied: "In general. Overall," before clarifying when queried if it was aimed at supporters or the press: "I love the fans and we are extremely pleased with the fans." Injury & Disciplinary Crisis Maresca also pointed to Chelsea's persistent injury and disciplinary issues, remarking they had been without star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the season, as well as losing linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and striker Liam Delap to two significant injuries. "I truly praise the players and the squad because we played 16 Premier League games, five of them minus Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them minus Liam Delap," he said. "And this squad, no matter who is on the pitch, they are performing fantastic. Today was 5 games in 12 days so for sure when you see Cole Palmer available, we 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 externally to recognize because the work from the players is fantastic." Chelsea's success over Everton cemented their standing in 4th place in the Premier League standings, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle scheduled in the coming days. Uncertainty Regarding Maresca's Comments 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 timeframe, the Italian had traveled back with his backroom team and players from Bergamo, held a training session at Cobham, faced a pre-game news conference where he seemed relaxed, and secured a win over an high-flying Everton team. It was not obvious whether any particular media reports had irked 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 related to the club's supporters, a section of which have still have yet to fully embrace him since his appointment from Leicester in July last year.
Enzo Maresca moved to Chelsea after leaving Leicester in July of last year. Chelsea gaffer Enzo Maresca remarked that the build-up to Saturday's victory against Everton represented "the most challenging 48 hours" since his arrival at Stamford Bridge. The 44-year-old made a puzzling statement in his after-game media briefing even after notching a 2-0 win at home courtesy of strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto. Those points lifted Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, perhaps lightening the mood after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the side's drought without a win to consecutive matches. Yet, when asked about Gusto's assist and overall display, Maresca surprisingly divulged his displeasure over the preceding two days within the club. "How the squad are eager to develop has been superb and this is the reason why I commend them - because with so many issues, they are doing very well after a complicated week," he said. "From the moment I arrived at the club, the previous 48 hours have been the toughest because several people failed to back us." When pushed further on the specifics, the former Leicester City manager continued: "Most difficult 48 hours since I came to the club because people didn't support me and the team." When questioned if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he replied: "In general. Overall," before clarifying when queried if it was aimed at supporters or the press: "I love the fans and we are extremely pleased with the fans." Injury & Disciplinary Crisis Maresca also pointed to Chelsea's persistent injury and disciplinary issues, remarking they had been without star attacker Cole Palmer for much of the season, as well as losing linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and striker Liam Delap to two significant injuries. "I truly praise the players and the squad because we played 16 Premier League games, five of them minus Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them minus Liam Delap," he said. "And this squad, no matter who is on the pitch, they are performing fantastic. Today was 5 games in 12 days so for sure when you see Cole Palmer available, we 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 externally to recognize because the work from the players is fantastic." Chelsea's success over Everton cemented their standing in 4th place in the Premier League standings, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle scheduled in the coming days. Uncertainty Regarding Maresca's Comments 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 timeframe, the Italian had traveled back with his backroom team and players from Bergamo, held a training session at Cobham, faced a pre-game news conference where he seemed relaxed, and secured a win over an high-flying Everton team. It was not obvious whether any particular media reports had irked 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 related to the club's supporters, a section of which have still have yet to fully embrace him since his appointment from Leicester in July last year.