Chelsea's Manager Maresca Describes Lead-Up Period as The 'Toughest Two Days' at the Club

Chelsea tactician Enzo Maresca stated that the preparation to Saturday's win against Everton constituted "the most challenging 48 hours" since his arrival with the London club.

The 44-year-old offered a rather mysterious message in his post-match press conference despite notching a 2-0 win at home thanks to goals from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

Those three precious points sent Chelsea back into the Premier League's top four, perhaps improving the atmosphere after a loss to Atalanta in the Champions League that had extended the side's drought without a win to four matches.

Yet, when asked about the full-back's assist and general performance, Maresca unexpectedly divulged his frustration over the previous 48-hour period within the club.

"How the squad want to improve has been excellent and this is the reason why I applaud them - because with numerous problems, they are performing admirably after a tricky week," he stated.

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

When pushed further on his meaning, the former Leicester City boss continued: "Most difficult 48 hours since I joined the club because people failed to back me and the team."

When questioned if he meant people within at Chelsea, he responded: "Broadly speaking. Overall," before specifying when queried if it was directed towards fans or the media: "I adore the fans and we are extremely content with the fans."

Injury & Suspension Crisis

Maresca also drew attention to Chelsea's ongoing injury and disciplinary problems, remarking they had been without star attacker Cole Palmer for a large portion of the campaign, as well as losing linchpin Moises Caicedo to a three-match ban and striker Liam Delap to two significant injuries.

"I truly commend the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games, five of them without Moises Caicedo, eleven of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap," he said.

"And this squad, regardless of who is playing, they are doing brilliantly. Today was five games in 12 days so for sure when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our finest player but we play almost all season without our best player.

"We play five games in the Premier League without Moises Caicedo. This is the reason why I'm so happy for the players and it's something that I would want people outside to acknowledge because the commitment from the players is fantastic."

Chelsea's win over Everton consolidated 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 Over Maresca's Comments

It was unclear who or what prompted Maresca to describe the past 48 hours as the most difficult of his time as Chelsea manager.

In that timeframe, the coach had traveled back with his staff and players from Bergamo, held a session at the training ground, faced a pre-game news conference where he appeared at ease, and engineered a win over an high-flying Everton team.

It was hard to discern whether any particular media reports had unsettled him, if social media comments played a role, or if it was something more significant from inside the club at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca only sought to rule out that it was an issue related to the club's supporters, some of whom have still have yet to fully embrace him since his arrival from Leicester during July last year.