Manchester United’s 4-1 battering by Como two weeks ago now looks a lucky escape – after the Italian side romped to a 9-1 victory at Lens in the Champions League. Cesc Fabregas’ side put in a stunning performance in a record-equalling win which well and truly announced them as contenders on the biggest stage. Como now sit fourth in the Champions League standings after also thrashing RB Leipzig and Man United, who are likely relieved that Lens took such a pounding. It means only Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, and Arsenal have got off to better starts, despite this being their maiden season in European competition. The lakeside outfit were 3-0 up at half-time – with the scorer of the third goal, Nico Paz, paying his respects to late Tenerife striker Jesus de Miguel – before a rout after the break.It is the latest statement win for Como, whose transformation began in 2019 when a pair of Indonesian billionaire brothers, who originally made their fortune in the tobacco industry, bought the club for $850,000 (£644,427) through their Djarum Group.
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Como thrashed Lens 9-1 in a record-equalling victory in the Champions League on Wednesday Cesc Fabregas is quickly building his name as one of the most talented coaches in Europe With a combined net worth then estimated at $48billion (£36.4billion), Robert Budi Hartono and Michael Bambang Hartono instantly made Como the richest club in Italian football.Rather than pursue instant success through lavish spending, Como have built steadily, investing in infrastructure, recruitment, and a clear footballing identity – and it is paying off big-time. They have now won six games on the bounce, though they still sit fourth in Serie A five points behind leaders Lazio, who have had an almost perfect start. Their crushing of Lens was the first time an Italian side had scored seven or more goals away from home in European Cup/Champions League history. And their hat-trick hero on the night, Anastasios Douvikas, is now the top scorer in the Champions League ahead of Erling Haaland. All of this comes for a side who were playing in the third tier just six seasons ago and on the back of a relatively modest summer spend of £58million on nine permanent arrivals and loanees. ‘Today everything went our way,’ said an ecstatic Fabregas post-match. ‘A great night for Como and our fans.’ There was a poignant moment when Paz paid homage to Miguel and his hometown club, holding aloft a shirt with the picture of the late star alongside the caption: ‘Rest in peace.’ Though he plays for Argentina, Paz was born in Tenerife and also spent time in the club’s youth system from 2014-16. Miguel died on Tuesday morning less than 24 hours after a collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono during their Spanish second division match on Monday. Having suffered serious head and chest injuries he subsequently suffered a cardiac arrest. Como’s Nico Paz paid tribute to Jesus de Miguel during his goalscoring celebration vs Lens Despite playing for Argentina, Paz was born in Tenerife and also played for their youth teams Tenerife striker De Miguel died on Tuesday morning after a horrifying clash with Jesus OwonoComo led 3-0 at half-time with hat-trick hero Douvikas scoring two at that point before Paz’s goal and his De Miguel tribute.Soon after the interval the Serie A outfit crushed any notion of the hosts coming back as they plundered in five goals in a devastating 22-minute spell which included Douvikas completing his hat-trick. Lucas Da Cunha, Marc-Oliver Kempf, Mattia Liberali, Martina Baturina also got in on the act during that period.Ruben Aguilar pulled one back for Lens before Matteo Papaccioli rounded off the rout in stoppage time. The 18-year-old Papaccioli, who came on in the second half, is a member of Como’s youth team and hasn’t even played in Serie A yet. Wednesday’s win means Como have broken many records in the Champions League.The Italian side matched the eight-goal winning margins recorded by Liverpool and Real Madrid in their 8-0 home victories over Besiktas and Malmo respectively. They also became only the second team after Bayern Munich to score nine goals in a Champions League match.Como followed their 4-1 victory over Manchester United with another emphatic performance, becoming the first team to score nine goals away from home in the European Cup since 1971 – Feyenoord beat Olympiacos Nicosia by this scoreline – as they climbed to fourth in the standings on nine points. The previous best scoring performance by an away club in the Champions League was Bayern Munich’s 8-2 win over Barcelona at a neutral venue (Lisbon) in 2020.Fabregas’s side may have made Champions League record-equalling history, but Feyenoord hold the European Cup mark for most goals scored in a single match, having beaten Icelandic side KR 12-2 in September 1969.Lens, who suffered the heaviest defeat by a French club in the competition, are 33rd with three points. READ: Goalkeeper involved in fatal collision with Spanish footballer speaks out to reveal his ‘enormous pain’ and says he will ‘face whatever comes’ after police opened homicide investigation and fans called him ‘murderer’