Sawt Falasteen - Maresca relishes support of Chelsea fans after difficult week

Chelsea moved into the semi-finals thanks to Alejandro Garnacho's double and a Pedro Neto strike after David Turnbull equalised for League One leaders Cardiff.

The Blues didn't have it all their own way in a hard-fought clash, but reaching a third semi-final in 18 months provided further evidence of Maresca's impact since he arrived from Leicester in 2024.

It was a well-timed victory after Maresca claimed following Saturday's 2-0 win over Everton that the previous 48 hours had been his worst at Stamford Bridge because he and his team lacked "support" from "many people".

The Italian's rant had fuelled speculation he was criticising the club's co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali and sporting directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley.

It has been suggested that Maresca was unhappy with the failure of Chelsea's hierarchy to publicly support him amid criticism of his rotation policy during the team's recent dip in form.

The win over Cardiff was only their second in six games in all competitions.

But Maresca, who led the Blues to Club World Cup and UEFA Conference League glory earlier this year, was serenaded by Chelsea's travelling supporters, who sang his name throughout the Cardiff match.

"I'm just happy, we're going to play another semi-final and I think it's what the fans deserve," Maresca said after making a point of marching across the pitch to acknowledge the fans at the final whistle.

"It was a great moment, I appreciate, always thankful. 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.

Asked if he had spoken to any of the Chelsea hierarchy since last weekend, Maresca said: "No, as I said yesterday (Monday), the day after Everton, I started to prepare Cardiff. Focus on Cardiff.

"I didn't speak with anyone. I didn't speak, no it's OK. I always said that I've been happy since day one. So it's not that tonight I'm not happy. I'm happy."

Maresca appears to have the full support of his players after they battled to subdue spirited Cardiff following the Blues manager's risky decision to make 11 changes, including resting England forward Cole Palmer.

Maresca was also without teenage winger Estevao, who will miss Saturday's Premier League clash at Newcastle with a "small muscle problem".

"These are the kind of games that I fall in love even more with the players because you cannot imagine how easy it is to slip, to slide, because they are tricky games," Maresca said.

"Every season there are teams that they lost against, you know, League Two or League One. You need to pay attention, you need to do the right things."

M.AbuKhalil--SF-PST