Chelsea's Boss Maresca Calls Pre-Match Time as The 'Worst Two Days' with the Club

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca stated that the preparation to the weekend's win against Everton represented "the worst 48 hours" of his tenure at Stamford Bridge.

The 44-year-old made a somewhat cryptic comment in his after-game interview even after securing a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge thanks to goals from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those points sent Chelsea back into the English top flight's top four, potentially lightening the mood after a defeat to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the team's winless run to four outings.

Yet, when asked about the full-back's assist and overall display, Maresca surprisingly divulged his annoyance over the previous 48-hour period at the club.

"How the squad want to learn has been superb and this is the explanation why I praise them - because with so many issues, they are doing very well after a complicated week," he stated.

"Since I joined the club, the past 48 hours have been the toughest because many people withheld support from us."

Pressed on the specifics, the ex- Leicester City boss continued: "Worst 48 hours since I came to the club because people didn't support me and the team."

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

Fitness & Suspension Crisis

Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's persistent injury and suspension issues, noting they had been missing star attacker Cole Palmer for a large portion of the season, in addition to losing key midfielder Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and forward Liam Delap to a couple of significant injuries.

"I truly applaud the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, 5 of them minus Moises Caicedo, eleven of them without Cole Palmer, nearly every one of them without Liam Delap," he said.

"And this squad, no matter who is on the pitch, they are doing fantastic. Today was five games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer there, we have said many times that he's our top player but we play the vast majority of the season without our best player.

"We play five games in the Premier League minus Moises Caicedo. This is the explanation why I'm so happy for the players and it's something that I would want people externally to appreciate because the effort from the players is remarkable."

Chelsea's triumph over Everton strengthened their standing in 4th place in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup quarter-final tie at Cardiff and a league trip to Newcastle scheduled next week.

Speculation Regarding Maresca's Remark

It was unclear what exactly prompted Maresca to label the past 48 hours as the most difficult of his spell as Chelsea manager.

In that timeframe, the coach had traveled back with his staff and players from his native Italy, conducted a training session at the training ground, attended a pre-game news conference where he appeared relaxed, and engineered a victory over an high-flying Everton team.

It was unclear whether any particular press stories had unsettled him, if online discourse played a role, or if it was something more significant from inside the club at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca specifically took care to deny that it was an issue involving the club's supporters, some of whom have still have yet to fully embrace him since his arrival from Leicester in July last year.