Fabregas downplays rivalry talk but eyes a result against Inter
With Como riding a six-match winning run and a threadbare attack, Cesc Fabregas frames the San Siro trip to Inter as three points rather than a statement, while keeping his goalkeeper choice deliberately vague.
Cesc Fabregas says Como will not be intimidated by the scale of Inter's history or support, insisting his side simply needs to "give it our all on that pitch and challenge for the best possible result" when the two meet at San Siro, Football Italia reported.
The fixture arrives with Como on a remarkable run of form. The club's 9-1 Champions League win away to RC Lens was their sixth consecutive victory across all competitions, and only Bayern Munich had previously scored nine in a single Champions League match, let alone a side appearing in the competition for the first time.
That context has invited talk of a title-race framing against the reigning Serie A champions, but Fabregas rejected it directly, telling Sky Sport Italia that the match is "just another match that is worth three points, the rest is marketing."
Why Fabregas is managing expectations, not raising them
The quotes matter because of what they reveal about how Fabregas wants his project read. He stressed that Como have worked together for only three years against a club with decades of trophies and crowds of 80,000, and that "we cannot expect to be at that level."
That is a deliberate lowering of the stakes rather than false modesty. Last season Como lost every meeting with Inter despite performances he described as strong, yet still reached the Champions League and came close to a Coppa Italia semi-final. Framing Sunday's game as another step in that same incremental process, rather than a measuring stick against the champions, protects the squad from a result that history suggests is more likely to go against them than for them.
A striker crisis forces the issue before kick-off
Behind the ambition sits a genuine squad problem. Moise Kean, Jesus Rodriguez, Trevoh Chalobah, Assane Diao and Jayden Addai are all unavailable, leaving Tasos Douvikas as the only fit recognised centre-forward Fabregas can call upon.
A single specialist striker against a team of Inter's quality is a significant structural limitation, not a rotation choice. It reduces the attacking options available from the bench in a game Como are already expected to play on the back foot for long periods, and it raises the stakes on whatever system Fabregas builds around Douvikas to make sure he is not isolated.
The goalkeeper call Fabregas won't explain
The other selection question concerns the goalkeeper. Jean Butez, Como's regular, is dropped to the bench in favour of Robert Sanchez, who remains owned by Chelsea. Asked directly whether there was a tactical reason, Fabregas gave a response that was notably guarded: "I don't know. I woke up this morning… No I'm kidding. There are reasons, but I would prefer this to stay between us, because it is not something we want to talk about outside."
He did add a line of reassurance for Butez, saying "it's out of respect for everyone, as Jean Butez is a great goalkeeper and Robert Sanchez shows in training how much he can do too. I just try to choose the best line-up for each individual game." The refusal to elaborate is itself informative: whatever the reasoning, Fabregas regards it as an internal matter rather than a decision built around Inter's attacking profile, which suggests squad management is driving the call more than a specific plan to stop Lautaro Martinez or whoever leads the Inter line.
Fabregas also pointed to his long relationship with Inter coach Cristian Chivu, noting that his first match as a coach, on the Como youth bench, came against a Chivu side. He said the two now compare notes on a shared experience: adjusting to playing every three days in continental competition, something Chivu went through for the first time last season and Como are only now encountering themselves.
That detail underlines how fixture congestion is shaping Como's season as much as any single opponent. A club experiencing a three-games-a-week rhythm for the first time, while missing five attacking players to injury, faces a very different challenge to the one Chivu's Inter are used to, even before kick-off is considered.
San Siro hosts the match at 17.00 GMT, with Inter looking to maintain their position as reigning champions and Como aiming to extend a run that has already produced the most eye-catching scoreline of their European debut season.