Cesc Fabregas’s team is no longer a surprise, and despite a few too many defeats against the strongest sides in the league, something that is entirely natural given the gap in resources, Como is firmly on course to secure a European place. The standings speak clearly.
Como sit in sixth place, just three points behind Roma and Juventus, teams that are unquestionably better equipped. The Catalan coach has shaped Como in his own image, and there are few teams in Serie A that reflect their coach’s ideas and identity as clearly. Last weekend’s win against Udinese may not have been a particularly demanding test, but the significance lies not in the single result, rather in the broader journey.
It is impossible to ignore the fact that Como’s ownership ranks among the wealthiest in the world. The management listened to Fabregas and did everything possible to meet his demands, allowing him to work almost as if he were a traditional Premier League manager. What makes the project especially compelling, however, is that investments have never been wasteful. The priority has consistently been to sign young players with potential, players who could be developed and possibly resold, rather than ready made profiles aimed at instant success.
Fabregas the director
There have been a few exceptions, such as Alvaro Morata, who has yet to provide the contribution Fabregas had hoped for, but the overall philosophy has remained consistent. Young, strong, promising, assets for the club. Fabregas is the director of Como’s story. His team plays a clearly recognizable style of football and this is entirely down to his influence. From the beginning, he has focused on building an identity more than results, believing that in the early stages it is better to play with courage and risk defeat than to chase results through cautious or speculative football.
That mentality has spread throughout the squad and even in the heaviest defeats, Como’s identity has always been visible and coherent. This is not just a team with a future. Fabregas is constructing that future piece by piece, match by match. He is the true architect of the Como project. During the summer and spring, he turned down approaches from bigger clubs such as Inter and Roma. He did so partly because he had given his word to the owners and partly because he would not have enjoyed the same freedom elsewhere. He is not simply a coach: Como gave him complete control and he has used it to build a technical and sporting project that reflects him perfectly.
The victory against Udinese was emphatic, if not in the scoreline then certainly in the performance. Caqueret and his teammates dominated from start to finish, creating chance after chance, hitting the crossbar, missing narrowly and repeatedly threatening the opposition goal.
Da Cunha the key
The decisive moment came from the penalty spot, converted by Lucas Da Cunha, one of the standout players in Fabregas’s side: the Frenchman is the brain of the team, he can operate deeper in midfield or higher behind the striker without any drop in quality or understanding of the game.
Several clubs were monitoring him during the summer, not least because he was born in 2001, but the Como captain is central to Fabregas’s plans and it would take a very strong offer to prise him away. Up next is a match against Pisa, a game that is far from unwinnable and represents another important opportunity to collect valuable points in the race for Europe. Competing with the top four or five teams in the league is difficult for obvious reasons, the other clubs are better and more equipped, but Como are right there in that group and Fabregas has no intention of stepping back.
Quite the opposite. In January, the priority is expected to be continuity with the current squad. Unless urgent needs arise, new arrivals are unlikely, but if reinforcements become necessary, the ownership will not hesitate to act. Fabregas has a clear objective: Europe. If they continue on this path that goal may be closer than many expect.