Chelsea's Manager Maresca Calls Pre-Match Time as The 'Most Difficult Two Days' at the Blues

Chelsea gaffer Enzo Maresca revealed that the build-up to Saturday's triumph against Everton represented "the toughest 48 hours" of his tenure with the London club.

The Italian delivered a rather mysterious statement in his post-match interview despite notching a 2-0 win at home through finishes from Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto.

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

Yet, when questioned about the full-back's contribution and general performance, Maresca unexpectedly divulged his displeasure over the previous two days at the club.

"How the squad are eager to develop has been fantastic and this is the reason why I applaud them - because with so many challenges, they are excelling after a difficult week," he commented.

"From the moment I arrived at the club, the previous 48 hours have been the worst because a lot of people failed to back us."

Pressed on the specifics, the ex- Leicester City manager added: "Worst 48 hours since I joined the club because people failed to back me and the team."

When asked if he meant people internally at Chelsea, he replied: "Broadly speaking. Overall," before specifying when asked if it was directed towards supporters or the media: "I love the fans and we are extremely pleased with the fans."

Injury and Disciplinary Woes

Maresca also highlighted Chelsea's ongoing injury and disciplinary issues, noting 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-game ban and forward Liam Delap to two serious injuries.

"I truly 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 said.

"And this squad, no matter who is on the pitch, they are performing fantastic. Today was five games in 12 days so undoubtedly when you see Cole Palmer playing, we have said many times that he's our finest player but we play almost all season minus 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 remarkable."

Chelsea's success over Everton cemented their position in fourth in the Premier League table, with a Carabao Cup last-eight tie at Cardiff and a league journey to Newcastle to come in the coming days.

Speculation Regarding Maresca's Remark

It was ambiguous who or what caused Maresca to label 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 at ease, and engineered a victory over an high-flying Everton team.

It was unclear whether any particular media reports had irked him, if social media comments were a factor, or if it was something more significant from inside the hierarchy at Stamford Bridge.

Maresca only sought to rule out that it was an matter related to the club's fans, a section of which have still have yet to fully embrace him since his arrival from Leicester in July last year.