A record night in France for Fabregas and Como
Como delivered a 9-1 Champions League victory at RC Lens, a result that put the Italian club alongside Real Madrid's 8-0 away win at Malmo in 2015 as one of the competition's most emphatic road performances. The visitors had already built a 6-0 advantage inside the first hour, and they kept scoring after the interval to complete a historic evening in France.[S1][S3]
Tasos Douvikas led the scoring with a hat-trick, finding the net in the 7th, 32nd and 57th minutes. Nico Paz struck in the 40th, Lucas da Cunha in the 47th and Marc-Oliver Kempf in the 53rd, while Mattia Liberali (62nd), Martin Baturina (69th) and Matteo Papaccioli (90th plus two) added further goals late on.[S1]
Ruben Aguilar pulled one back for Lens in the 65th minute, but the consolation goal did little to interrupt Como's momentum. The scale of the win underlined how quickly the club has adapted to Europe's elite competition in its debut season.[S1]
Fabregas warns against hype
Speaking to ESPN after the match, Fabregas described the evening as a significant one for the club, its supporters and the young players beginning their careers, but insisted the squad must remain grounded and continue working. He said the team has to absorb the lesson now so that it does not start believing its own publicity or assuming the work is finished.[S1]
The Como coach also made clear that a single strong result should be treated as exactly that, with the focus shifting immediately to producing more good performances. Separate coverage noted that Fabregas was unhappy about conceding a goal despite the record-setting margin of victory.[S1][S2]
European form and Serie A ambitions
Como's debut Champions League campaign has already brought wins over Bundesliga side RB Leipzig and English club Manchester United. Across four matches in the competition the Italian side has scored 19 goals, a tally bettered only by Paris Saint-Germain's 20, while conceding six compared with PSG's five.[S1]
The goal differences of both clubs, PSG at plus 15 and Como at plus 13, could prove decisive as they chase progression with further positive results. Domestically, Como sits fourth in Serie A and is competing for the title after returning to the top flight in 2024 for the first time in 21 years.[S1]
