The Argentinian got a crucial goal in a 3-0 win over Aston Villa at home in the Premier League on Sunday
Post-game, Maresca admitted that getting Fernandez further forward was intentional.
He stated: "Exactly. For most times, he was in those positions, inside the box. We didn't contact with him in the action when we scored. It is very difficult to score goals from outside of the box.
“Usually all the goals happen from inside the box, so we need the two wingers, the No.9 inside the box. We need players inside the box to try and score goals.
"The first goal we scored is because Marc Cucurella is in the right position to win the ball back and then we scored a goal."
He then added on defender Malo Gusto: "Malo is doing fantastic. I've said many times that one of the reasons why we are where we are at this moment is because of Malo. He helps us a lot in terms of the process.
"With us, he has played as a higher full-back, full-back inside, a full-back in the pocket. He is playing three or four positions and is learning different things."
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