If reports were to be believed, the Italian was intense but well respected and liked by his players, and so a perceived lack of support from above served no purpose other than to make a difficult working environment just about impossible.
After owners Clearlake Capital had already opened the exit door for Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard and Mauricio Pochettino, hiring Maresca - who soon took them to the Club World Cup title - gave a sense of the club finally turning a corner.
His reign lasted for 92 matches, and his win percentage of 59.78% was the best of those managers hired by Clearlake, and only marginally shy of Tuchel's 60%.
To give some context, Pochettino's 51 resulted in a win percentage of 50.98%, Lampard posted 9.09% for his 11 games in charge, and Potter's 31 matches returned a 38.71% win percentage.
It's difficult to imagine that the situation which occurred with Maresca blindsided those in charge; however, it did appear that they had no real plan of continuity in place.
Six-year deal for inexperienced Rosenior
Ultimately, Liam Rosenior was appointed, a man whose previous managerial experience extended to an interim post at Derby County, Hull City and Strasbourg, a club in the Clearlake stable and, for want of a better term, a feeder club for Chelsea.
Playing stints at Bristol City, Fulham, Torquay United, Reading, Ipswich, Hull and Brighton didn't really qualify him for the Chelsea position either, with the greatest respect.
And yet, those in charge of the club thought that he would be the perfect solution. So much so that they even offered him a six-year contract.
Within a handful of games, however, Rosenior has already proven that the role is just too big for him.
Rambling press conferences and an evident lack of authority mean that the knives are out for him, but, as Flashscore's transfer expert Dean Jones has reported, the Blues' hierarchy is still standing behind their man.
That's despite the very real possibility that the Stamford Bridge outfit might not have any European football to look forward to next season, if their recent slump continues.
In their last eight games in all competitions, they have beaten both Wrexham and Port Vale in the FA Cup, and will soon play Leeds United in the semi-final. However, they have lost the other six matches.
No goals scored in the last four league games
An 8-2 aggregate loss in the Champions League Round of 16 saw them dumped out of that competition by the holders, Paris Saint-Germain.
In the Premier League, they've been defeated by Newcastle (1-0), Everton (3-0), Man City (3-0) and Man Utd (1-0). Four losses without a goal have left them hanging onto their European aspirations for dear life.
With five games left of the league season, Chelsea find themselves in sixth, which would qualify them for the Europa League.
Clearly, a team of such expensively assembled talent should be in the Champions League, but the Blues are already seven points behind Liverpool in fifth.
No guarantee of any European football
What makes their situation so acute is that Brentford and Bournemouth, who sit directly below them in the table, are on the same points and with better recent form.
Brighton (who they play on Tuesday night) and Everton are just a point behind; Sunderland are two points behind; and Fulham, who are way down in 12th, are only three points away.
It isn't being overly dramatic to suggest that these next five matches are amongst the most important in Chelsea's recent history, and there are very valid question marks as to whether Rosenior is the right person to be able to arrest the recent slide.
Whilst it's self-evident that he only wants to impress and has a laser focus on wanting to do the very best for Chelsea, he just doesn't have the gravitas or personality to win over this group of players.
Rosenior has already become a laughing stock
In hindsight, dropping a World Cup winner in Enzo Fernandez for two games, for hinting at a move to Real Madrid, wasn't the best way to exert the authority that Rosenior clearly believes he has.
Although one has to again point the finger at Clearlake for putting the 41-year-old under such scrutiny in the first place.
Even if the West Londoners manage to end the season semi-successfully, the notion that Rosenior is something of a laughing stock is going to hamper any efforts to take him seriously as a manager.
Chelsea simply can't allow that to happen, and surely their own purpose would be better served by putting him out of his misery sooner rather than later.
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