Chelsea's Manager Maresca Describes Lead-Up Time as His 'Toughest Two Days' with the Blues

Chelsea tactician Enzo Maresca remarked that the run-up to Saturday's triumph against Everton represented "the worst 48 hours" of his tenure at Stamford Bridge.

The 44-year-old made a rather mysterious statement in his after-game interview despite earning a 2-0 win at home courtesy of strikes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those three precious points lifted Chelsea once again into the English top flight's top four, potentially lightening the atmosphere following a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had stretched the team's drought without a win to consecutive outings.

But, when asked about Gusto's assist and general display, Maresca unexpectedly shared his annoyance over the preceding two days at the club.

"How the players want to improve has been excellent and this is the reason why I applaud them - because with a host of challenges, they are doing very well after a difficult week," he said.

"From the moment I arrived at the club, the past 48 hours have been the most difficult because several people failed to back us."

When pushed further on what he meant, the ex- Leicester City boss added: "Worst 48 hours since I came to the club because people failed to back me and the team."

When asked if he was referring to people internally at Chelsea, he responded: "Broadly speaking. Overall," before clarifying when queried if it was directed towards supporters or the media: "I love the fans and we are very pleased with the fans."

Fitness & Disciplinary Crisis

Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's persistent fitness and disciplinary problems, remarking they had been without key forward Cole Palmer for a large portion of the campaign, in addition to being deprived of key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-game ban and striker Liam Delap to a couple of significant injuries.

"I truly commend 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, regardless of who is on the pitch, they are doing exceptionally. Today was 5 games in 12 days so for sure when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our best player but we play almost all season without our best player.

"We play 5 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 recognize because the work from the players is outstanding."

Chelsea's triumph over Everton cemented their standing in fourth in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie at Cardiff and a league journey to Newcastle scheduled in the coming days.

Uncertainty Regarding Maresca's Comments

It was ambiguous what exactly caused Maresca to label the past 48 hours as the most difficult of his time as Chelsea head coach.

In that window, the Italian had traveled back with his staff and players from Bergamo, conducted a session at the training ground, faced a pre-game press briefing where he seemed at ease, and secured a victory over an in-form Everton team.

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

Maresca only sought 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 last year.