Maresca ‘happy’ at Chelsea & ‘in love’ with squad

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca insists he is “happy” at the club and “falling more in love with the players”, days after saying he experienced “the worst 48 hours” of his tenure.

The Blues sit fourth in the Premier League following victory over Everton on Saturday and have now progressed to the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup after beating League One side Cardiff City 3-1 on Tuesday in south Wales.

But both fixtures have been overshadowed by Maresca’s comments after the Everton win – that the two days prior to the match were “the worst since I joined the club because people didn’t support me and the team”.

It remains unclear who or what exactly the comments were directed at and Maresca did not elaborate when questioned during his news conference on Monday.

But, following victory over Cardiff – where the Italian had to rely on goals from substitutes Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho to secure progression – Maresca said he does feel supported.

“I said many times in many press conferences, the support, they have always been there, knowing that any supporters in the world when you don’t win, they are not happy,” he said.

“So in some moments when you don’t win games, they have been not happy, but it’s normal. But overall, the fans have always been there.

Maresca, who led the Blues to Club World Cup and Europa Conference League glory earlier this year, has now taken Chelsea to three semi-finals in 18 months.

But speculation around what he has said, and what he has not, has rumbled on from Saturday with his failure to explain what he meant.

Maresca’s team selection and rotation policy has come under criticism at times this season and the former Leicester boss is believed to have wanted more protection from figures within Chelsea during their recent four-game winless run.

He has also been quick to highlight his injury and suspension problems, with star forward Cole Palmer injured for much of the season while key midfielder Moises Caicedo is serving a three-match suspension and managing an ongoing knee issue.

Having qualified for the Champions League in his first season in charge then guided Chelsea to two trophies, Maresca perhaps feels he should receive more support.

Reaching the last four of the League Cup puts the Blues as contenders for another piece of silverware.

Asked if he felt backed by the club, Maresca told Sky Sports: “Tonight the focus has to be that we reached the semi-final, the support from fans has always been there.