Win came after ‘worst 48 hours’ at Chelsea, says Maresca
Enzo Maresca claimed the past two days were his worst at Chelsea, seemingly because of a lack of support, in a strange post-match press conference after they picked up their first win in four Premier League games.
The fit-again Cole Palmer netted in a 2-0 win against Everton, finishing calmly to put the Blues in control early on.
Malo Gusto then doubled the lead on the stroke of half-time, and Chelsea were able to see out the rest of the game with little trouble.
Head coach Maresca praised both goalscorers and the team in general for a “fantastic” effort after a rocky start to December.
He had seen his side lose to Leeds United and Atalanta away from home, as well as struggle to a draw with Bournemouth.
“I really praise the players and the squad because we have played 16 Premier League games (this season), five of them without Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap,” Maresca said.
“This squad, no matter who is playing, they are doing fantastic. Today was the fifth game in 12 day.
“We said many times that (Palmer) is our best player, but we’ve played almost all season without our best player.
“This is the reason why I’m so happy for the players, and it’s something that I would like, from outside, people to appreciate because the effort from the players is fantastic.”
The Italian then added: “The reason why I praise the players is because, with so many problems, they are doing very well after a complicated week.
“The last 48 hours have been the worst 48 hours since I joined the club, because many people didn’t support us.
“So I’m very happy for Malo at this moment. The effort from Malo and the rest shows that they are all there and they want to help this club.
“With so many problems, they are doing very well after a complicated week.”
Pressed on what he meant, Maresca said he was not referring to Chelsea fans but an apparent lack of support from “people in general”.
The win left Chelsea fourth in the table. Their next league game is next Saturday, away to Newcastle.
