"It's the effort from the players," he said. "We said many times that Reece [James] and Malo, they are both full-backs and today they were both midfielders. So the effort, the open mind, the way they want to learn has been fantastic and this is the reason why I praise the players because with so many problems, they are doing very well after a complicated week.
"Since I joined the club, 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 in that moment that the effort from Malo and from the rest show that they are all there and they want to help this club."
When pushed for clarification on his remarks, the Chelsea boss responded: "Worst 48 hours since I joined the club because people didn't support me and the team. In general, in general. I love the fans and we are very happy with the fans."
Maresca's job was made somewhat easier on Saturday afternoon when Palmer netted his first goal since September 17, opening the scoring for Chelsea against Everton.
Gusto doubled the Blues' lead just before half-time, rounding off the scoring for the day in west London. Maresca was quick to commend his squad for their performance throughout the season, particularly given the absence of key player Palmer for a significant portion of it.
"I said many times that with Cole we are a better team," Maresca stated. "I really praise the players and the squad because we played 16 Premier League games, five of them without Moises Caicedo, 11 of them without Cole Palmer, almost all of them without Liam Delap. And this squad, no matter who is playing, they are doing fantastic.
"Today was five games in 12 days so for sure when you see Cole Palmer there, we said many times that he's our best player but we play almost all season without our best player."