What's eating Enzo Maresca? Chelsea boss learning that success doesn't always mean stability at Stamford Bridge

After Chelsea's hard-fought Carabao Cup win in Cardiff on Tuesday, Enzo Maresca went to applaud the travelling support. They responded by singing the Italian's name. At most clubs, there would be nothing remotely remarkable about a pretty perfunctory display of mutual affection between a fan base and a trophy-winning manager. Chelsea are not most clubs, though.

For the much-maligned Maresca, this was a "great moment", a significant show of solidarity at a most opportune time for the 45-year-old, who went 'full Mo Salah' after last Saturday's win over Everton by seemingly calling out his employers.

Precisely a week after the Liverpool winger had sensationally claimed that "someone doesn't want me in the club", Maresca bizarrely used a question about Malo Gusto's positive performance in a 2-0 win over Everton to reveal that the preceding 48 hours had been "the worst" of his 18-month spell at Stamford Bridge "because many people didn't support us".

Maresca made it very clear that he had no issue with the fans, but when asked if he had been referring to figures within Chelsea, he would only say, "In general, in general." So, what exactly is eating Enzo Maresca? Is he not being adequately backed at the Bridge? And could Chelsea end up sacking him over his public criticism of the club?…

AFPDoubters from day one

Chelsea's 3-1 win in Wales means Maresca can now look forward to a third semi-final since succeeding Maurico Pochettino at the helm in the summer of 2024. The Blues also won the previous two, on their way to lifting the Conference League and Club World Cup last season.

It should also be remembered that in between lifting two trophies, Maresca also led Chelsea back into the Champions League. In that sense, the alleged lack of support for the manager seems strange. However, there's nothing straightforward about the situation at Stamford Bridge.

For starters, there have been doubts over Maresca's ability to get the absolute best out of Chelsea's expensively-assembled squad right from day one. Remember, Leicester City fans weren't especially sorry to see him leave the King Power Stadium – even though he'd overseen the Foxes' promotion to the Premier League.

Their Chelsea counterparts were also underwhelmed by his appointment, given his predecessor, the far more experienced Pochettino, had actually appeared to be making real progress with a bloated and unbalanced squad shortly before the Argentine's surprise exit.

AdvertisementGetty Images Sport'We've got our Chelsea back!'

By this time last year, Maresca looked to have won over the most sceptical section of supporters, with "We've got our Chelsea back!" ringing around west London as the Blues propelled themselves into the Premier League title race with five consecutive wins between the tail end of November and the middle of December. However, the always testing festive period couldn't have gone much worse for Maresca, whose team took just three points from five games.

Chelsea rallied to secure Champions League football on the final day, but even during an encouraging run of form there was criticism of Maresca's allegedly ponderous style of play, and he was even targeted by frustrated fans while his team were trailing during a win at Fulham in April.

Winning the Conference League went some way towards strengthening Maresca's position, but it was the Club World Cup triumph that really put him on a firm footing.

Getty Images Sport'Value it as much as the Champions League'

Chelsea earned more than £90 million ($120m) from winning FIFA's flagship event but, for Maresca, the 3-0 rout of treble-winning Paris Saint-Germain in the final was utterly priceless.

"I was lucky three years ago to be part of the coaching staff when [Manchester City] won the Champions League," Pep Guardiola's former assistant said. "I lived all these moments, but the truth is that this competition is one of the best in the world. We value it as [much as] the Champions League, if not more so, because it has really been a great triumph for us, and to allow the fans of Chelsea to have the chance for the next four years with this badge, the truth is that for us it is an honour."

The argument that a glorified pre-season tournament was more prestigious than the Champions League was obviously nonsense, but there was certainly no underselling its importance to Maresca – or indeed Chelsea.

For the owners, the Club World Cup represented validation of their unorthodox recruitment strategy, proof that there was a method to the madness; that the unprecedented investment in youth was paying off. Six months on, though, and the doubts have resurfaced.

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Getty Images SportNothing more than a dangerous cup team?

The main problem is that Chelsea remain one of the most unpredictable teams in football. For example, after battering Barcelona and holding Arsenal to a 1-1 draw despite playing more than an hour with 10 men, Maresca's schizophrenic side then went and lost 3-1 to Leeds United at Elland Road before fading in the second half of a 2-1 defeat away to Atalanta.

Chelsea are essentially a dangerous cup team, capable of beating anyone on their day but lacking the consistency required to sustain a title challenge, and many people have pointed the finger of blame at Maresca, deeming him guilty of rotating his players too regularly.

"We cannot follow up two unbelievable performances with a performance like that," Chelsea legend John Terry said on Tiktok after the loss at Leeds. "It's certainly not going to make you title contenders. Unfortunately, that’s what’s going to cost us.

"We are inexperienced, because if you can't go Leeds away and know what to expect then… You need to go there and show the fight, match Leeds in every single way and then earn your right to play.

"But weak set-pieces, individual mistakes defensively, clearly not good enough… Maybe that's an opportunity for the manager to look at the squad and go 'Okay, rotation is not for me moving forward, I know my best 11 to 14 players and I'll stick with that, and the other players are just going to have to deal with it."