Cesc Fabregas’ Bold Gambit Delivers as Como Clinch First Serie A Home Win Since 2003

After Como conceded a late equaliser to surrender a two-goal lead against Bologna two weeks ago, Cesc Fabregas remained upbeat.

“I’m completely sure the path we’re on is the right one,” he told reporters after the Lariani’s first home game in Serie A in over two decades.

“If we keep playing the way we’ve been playing, wins are going to come sooner rather than later. Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

Rome may have not been built in a day, but the Comaschi are putting down some solid foundations to their first top-flight campaign since 2003.

Having ended a 21-year wait for a Serie A win with a 3-2 victory in Bergamo against Atalanta on Tuesday night, Como beat Verona by the same score at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia on Sunday.

Patrick Cutrone scored twice either side of a Darko Lazovic penalty and Andrea Belotti finally opened his account for the season before Mathis Lambourde pulled one back in injury time for the visitors, who lost Tomas Suslov to a red card halfway through the second half.

The result lifted Como up to 10th in the table with eight points after six games, four clear of the relegation zone and just three off fourth-placed Inter Milan.

Fabregas, however, was eager to keep his team grounded.

“We were the better team and got the result we deserved, but there’s always room for improvement,” he said. 

“We need to be tougher to break down. In the first half, we had plenty of chances to put the game to bed, but we weren’t clinical enough.” 

How Fabregas’ tactical switch paid off

Como’s wins against Atalanta and Verona have vindicated Fabregas’ decision to remain committed to the 4-2-3-1 formation he introduced against Bologna.

The Lariani started the season with a flat 4-4-2, scoring just once and conceding five goals in three matches – albeit three of those goals came against Juventus.

The tactical switch has made Como significantly more prolific, with eight goals scored in their last three fixtures. Against Verona, Como had six shots on target in the first half alone.

Over that stretch, however, they have looked worryingly fragile at the back, conceding six goals in the process.

Even more frustratingly for Fabregas, three of those goals have come after the clock had already ticked past 90 minutes.

Samuel Iling-Junior scored in the 91st minute as Bologna snatched a point in Como, while Ademola Lookman pulled one back for Atalanta in the ninth minute of injury time on Tuesday and Verona found the net in the 94th minute on Sunday.

“Giving up late goals, like we did against Bologna and in Bergamo, is simply unacceptable,” the Spaniard said. 

“We let them [Verona] back into it in the second half, maybe because of fatigue. We need to find a way to maintain our intensity for the full 90 minutes.”

Fabregas may want his side to be more clinical in taking their chances, but the numbers show Como have in fact overperformed in front of goal since switching to 4-2-3-1.

According to Opta, the Lariani’s xG (expected goals) was 2.25 against Verona, 1.06 against Atalanta and 1.17 against Bologna.

By comparison, their xG was 1.53 in their 1-1 draw away against Cagliari and 1.68 in their 1-0 defeat in Udine – a figure admittedly skewed by Cutrone’s penalty miss.

Only in the 3-0 defeat against Juventus on the opening day of the season did Como reap what they had sown, with an xG of 0.17.

Over the first six matches of the campaign, Serie A’s newcomers are overperforming their xG by 1.14, the 10th highest figure in the league.

Cutrone’s goalscoring run continues

Cutrone has been the main beneficiary of the tactical change, scoring three times in the last three outings. 

Behind him, the trio of Alieu Fadera, Nico Paz and Gabriel Strefezza, who all joined Como this summer, are starting to click – just as Fabregas had hoped.

On Sunday, Fadera set up Cutrone’s first and Paz, who had registered two assists in the win against Atalanta, created the second and hit the post.

It was a perfectly timed performance from the 20-year-old, who was being watched by Argentina assistant manager Walter Samuel.

“Nico Paz is doing great, and he’s got a great attitude. He needs to keep working hard and stay humble, though,” Fabregas said. 

“We’re still not there yet. I’m really happy for him and how he played today. But I’m even happier with his mindset.”

Friday night’s trip to Naples will be a major test of Como’s recent progress. But one suspects that even a defeat against the Serie A leaders will not undermine Fabregas’ beliefs.

Rome, after all, wasn’t built in a day.