Como Calcio has qualified for the Champions League for the first time following a 4-1 win at US Cremonese. It wasn’t until the 2018–19 season that the team from Lake Como made its return to professional soccer. Coach Cesc Fabregas has been with the team for four years. Como’s head coach recalls the early days—and is full of praise for his young squad.
Cesc Fabregas has witnessed Como’s rapid development firsthand in recent years and has played a key role in driving it forward. In 2022, the Spaniard was still playing for the “Lariani”; since the 2024/25 season, Fabregas has been head coach. The 2010 World Cup champion recalls the early days in a DAZN interview: “When I came to Como as a player four years ago, we changed in a bar and didn’t have a training center. Everyone left around 12 or 12:30 p.m., and after that, no one was there anymore. Today we’re playing in the Champions League.”
It had long been clear that Como Calcio would be playing in Europe next season, but after two losses to Sassuolo and Inter on matchdays 32 and 33, the team threatened to run out of steam in the final sprint for the Champions League. The opposite happened: Como remained unbeaten after that, picking up 13 out of a possible 15 points from their last five games. Fabregas: “Before the game against Parma, I said that two wins would get us into the Champions League.” He was right. To motivate his players, Fabregas drew inspiration from another sport: “I showed them a video of a cyclist who finished sixth. By the end of the season, he was getting faster and faster, really turned it up, and won. That’s exactly what we managed to do at the last second.”
Fabregas: “It’s like studying every day”
According to Fabregas, the success is particularly remarkable given the team’s young age: “ The fifteen players with the most playing time are almost all under 23.“ The coach credits them with playing the decisive role: ”The players always believed in it. They worked hard, listened, always wanted more, and raised the bar when it was needed.“ Fabregas continued: ”As a coach, I can try to spur the team on and provide solutions, but in the end, they are the ones who make the dream a reality.”
Since Fabregas’ arrival in Italy, a lot has changed within the club. He himself has played a major role in that. Even though he can be “exhausting at times,” as Fabregas emphasizes, he thanked the club president, who gave him “free rein” in many decisions. He says he has “grown enormously” as a result. Fabregas does not see himself as having reached the end of his development: “It’s like studying every day.” When asked about his personal future, the Spaniard replied: “When you feel ready one day, you can take the leap.” And if he doesn’t take it? “Then that means Como has continued to grow and the leap has already been made here.” Until then, he said, there is certainly still a “long way to go.”
