Chelsea scored three second-half goals to secure a valuable away win in the first leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final against Legia Warsaw.
Cole Palmer, 22, started the game but was hooked off at half-time, replaced by Noni Madueke who went on to score twice.
Speaking to the press after the game, Maresca revealed it was all part of the plan and Chelsea’s most potent attacking threat was ‘fine’.
“We planned for him and Tosin to come off on 45 minutes,” he said at his post-match press conference. “Everything is fine.
“We planned the game to try to have our best players for this game and to also give chances for some rest and to recover energy.”
Chelsea will need Palmer at his best as they seek to qualify for the Champions League at the end of the season.