Know Your Opponent: 10 Things Manchester United Fans Should Know About Como

Manchester United supporters already know Cesc Fàbregas. You probably know Nico Paz is worth watching, too. The more useful questions are what happens around him, how Como create their chances, and what an opponent can do to disrupt them.

After seven Serie A games, Como have 14 points, with 12 goals scored and seven conceded. Their first two Champions League matches brought a 4–1 win over Leipzig and a 3–2 defeat at Feyenoord. There is attacking quality here, and there are ways through the defence.

From someone who would rather you did not discover too many of the latter, here are ten things to know about your next opponents.

1. Fàbregas wants to make the opposition work without the ball

A 4–2–3–1 is a useful starting point for understanding Como, but the formation graphic only tells you so much. The important part is the number of players comfortable receiving a pass, moving it on and offering themselves again.

Como will try to draw opponents towards the ball and find the space that movement creates. Let the midfield settle into its passing and the attacking players get more opportunities to receive facing goal. Press without covering the next pass and you risk helping Como advance.

There is evidence of the patience involved: through the first six league games, Como had produced 35 open-play sequences of at least ten passes ending in a shot or a touch in the opposition box, according to the Opta figures in Eurosport’s Fiorentina preview.

For United, the challenge is deciding when to engage. Chasing every pass is likely to be exhausting. Allowing every pass is likely to be dangerous.

2. Nico Paz is the player who turns possession into something more threatening

If you follow only one Como player closely, make it Nico.

His value lies in the range of problems he poses. He can receive between midfield and defence, carry the ball towards a retreating back line, or arrive in the box after somebody else has supplied the pass. Sunday’s win at Fiorentina offered two clear examples: a headed goal from Álex Valle’s cross, followed by the counterattack and assist for Tasos Douvikas’s finish. Match report.

That creates an awkward assignment for his marker. Follow him towards midfield and space can open behind you; leave him there and he may turn with time to assess the pitch.

My advice to United supporters watching him is to pay attention before he receives the ball. The movement that makes the next pass possible often explains the danger better than the final touch.

3. Douvikas gives all that creativity a destination

Tasos Douvikas leads Como’s Serie A scoring with three goals, and has another two in the Champions League. Those totals are recorded by Tattico and UEFA.

He gives Nico and the other attacking midfielders a forward to find beyond the defence. His run and finish at Fiorentina illustrated that relationship: Nico advanced, Douvikas offered the pass, and the move ended with a goal.

His presence also gives the centre-backs a decision. Step out towards a creative player and somebody still has to account for the striker behind you.

Fàbregas can choose a different arrangement. Nico started as a false nine at Feyenoord, with Douvikas introduced later. That changes where Como’s threat comes from: without a conventional striker occupying the middle, the runs beyond Nico become especially important. Watch who is attacking the space, rather than assuming the player listed furthest forward will stay there.

4. Diao’s importance goes well beyond his pace

Assane Diao leads Como with 16 key passes in Serie A, ahead of Nico’s 13. A key pass is a pass that directly produces a shot. He also has two league goals. Tattico’s chance-creation figures help explain why his absence matters so much.

The goal at Feyenoord showed his direct threat: Ramón played long, Diao attacked the space, beat his defender and finished. A team associated with patient possession can still hurt you very quickly if the opening is there. Rotterdam match report.

His subsequent muscular injury kept him out at Fiorentina. That is significant to the identity of this team, regardless of the final team news against United. Remove Diao and Como lose both a runner behind the defence and their leading league chance creator.

The remaining attackers have to share those jobs. They cannot simply recreate him by standing in the same position.

5. The quieter midfielders are worth your attention

Lucas Da Cunha, Máximo Perrone and Luis Milla will probably receive less attention in the English coverage than Nico. Watch them anyway.

Through seven league games, their key-pass totals are 11, ten and nine respectively. Creativity is coming from deeper positions as well as from the players nearest Douvikas. Tattico.

Their importance also shows up when Fàbregas changes the match. At Fiorentina, he introduced Perrone for Nico and later explained that keeping Perrone, Milla, Da Cunha and Maxence Caqueret together was intended to help Como retain possession. Post-match explanation.

Taking off the most obviously creative player can therefore be an attempt to gain control. For United, blocking the pass into Nico is only part of the task. If the deeper players can keep finding one another, Como can move the attack elsewhere and try again.

6. The full-backs help supply the attack — and the centre-backs can bypass midfield

Yan Couto has nine league key passes and Álex Valle eight. Those numbers put the full-backs among Como’s significant suppliers of chances. Valle’s cross for Nico’s header in Florence provided the latest example. Club chance-creation rankings.

The practical consequence is that United’s wide players have defensive decisions to make. Narrow their position to help around Nico and there may be room outside. Follow the full-back and there may be more room for a midfielder inside.

But focusing exclusively on the short combinations would miss another route. Jacobo Ramón’s long pass for Diao’s goal in Rotterdam went over the midfield contest altogether.

That is why the timing of the pressure matters. A high line needs pressure on the player supplying the ball. Give a defender time to look up while leaving space behind, and Como have already demonstrated that they are willing to use it.

7. There are more attacking options than the headline names suggest

Martin Baturina has two Serie A goals. Mattia Liberali opened his league account at Fiorentina with a composed left-footed finish on his first start for Como. The scoring list already contains seven different names.

Liberali is particularly worth remembering if you have only watched the highlights involving Nico. His selection in Florence gave Como another player willing to receive in an attacking position and take responsibility for the finish. The opportunity was limited; the contribution was substantial.

There is an important European qualification to the depth discussion, however. Caqueret started in that win and helped Como manage the second half, but he is not on the Champions League squad list. Neither is Jayden Addai. UEFA’s registered squad therefore matters more than simply copying the domestic teamsheet.

Fàbregas has options, but the options change with the competition. That helps explain why the attacking combinations may look different from one match to the next.

8. United can find chances behind the press and from set pieces

Here is the part a Como supporter would prefer to skim over.

Fàbregas has acknowledged the problems caused by balls behind the defence against Frosinone. After Fiorentina, he also highlighted concentration at set pieces: Pongračić scored following a corner and had another effort from a free-kick disallowed for offside. Fàbregas’s assessment.

The Florence shot map reinforces the warning. Como won 3–1, but Fiorentina generated 19 shots and 2.27 non-penalty xG, compared with 16 and 1.89 for Como. These are the figures on Tattico’s match graphic.

My reading is that United should look for the forward pass once Como’s first pressure is beaten, while keeping runners available beyond the ball. Dead-ball deliveries also deserve attention. Como can defend those situations better than they did in Florence, but the weakness has been visible.

Jean Butez’s saves and recovery interventions from defenders have helped. We would rather need fewer of them.

9. The Sinigaglia will encourage Como to be ambitious

The first Champions League home match ended 4–1 against Leipzig. That is only one result, not proof of an intimidating European record, but it gave this team and its supporters a powerful reason to believe in the approach.

United arrive for the club’s second home game in the competition. The Curva Como Ovest, whose new capacity is 4,258, is the focal point of the home support. Club stadium information.

I would expect the crowd to respond to positive football: a successful press, an escape from pressure, a player turning towards goal. Those moments can make a compact ground feel very involved in the match.

For United, a composed start could matter. For Como, the temptation will be to feed that energy. The balance between ambition and leaving too much space is one of the most revealing things to watch.

10. If you are travelling, leave a little time beyond the football

For supporters actually making the trip, the old town and lakefront are an easy starting point. If you have an extra day, we recommend taking a skipper-led boat tour with stops in Bellagio and Varenna, with time ashore in both towns. If you're feeling more adventurous, you can captain your own speedboat.

And if you're curious about local wines and cuisine, take a sommelier-guided wine tasting with local food.

Keep longer excursions for the day before or after if possible, and leave plenty of time for the match-specific away entry arrangements.

Whether you are coming to the Sinigaglia or watching from home, watch the spaces around Nico, the runs beyond him and what happens when United get through Como’s first pressure. That is where much of this team’s appeal (and much of our anxiety) lives.