Como Dominates Leipzig 4–1 in Champions League Debut
On a night that will live long around Lake Como, a club making its first steps in the UEFA Champions League strode out like it had been here for years.
Cesc Fabregas’s Como 1907 didn’t just debut. They dominated. RB Leipzig were swept aside 4–1, and by the final whistle the only surprise was how quickly the Italians had made the biggest stage feel like home.
Baturina writes Como’s first European line
The breakthrough came early and carried history with it. On 15 minutes, Martin Baturina arrived in the right pocket of space and buried the chance that will be replayed in Como for generations: the club’s first-ever European goal.
No nerves. No hesitation. One clean strike, and the Champions League era for Como had its opening sentence.
Leipzig looked rattled. Como smelled it.
Baturina, already dictating the tempo, turned provider. Tasos Douvikas latched onto his pass and made it 2–0, a finish that underlined just how ruthless Fabregas wants this side to be. Two chances, two goals, and a seasoned Bundesliga outfit suddenly looked like the newcomers.
The rhythm of the game belonged entirely to the Croat in the middle. Constantly finding angles, drifting into half-spaces, dragging markers into places they didn’t want to go – it was the kind of midfield performance that earns comparisons, and Baturina has already heard the big one. Those echoes of Luka Modric in his movement and awareness felt louder with every touch.
UEFA’s Technical Observer Group took note and named him Player of the Match. No one in the stadium argued.
Como turn dominance into a statement
Any thought of a Leipzig response after the interval vanished when Assane Diao struck. Como had already tightened their grip on midfield; Diao’s goal tightened it on the scoreboard. At 3–0, this no longer looked like a plucky debut. It looked like a statement.
Leipzig did find a flicker of resistance. Eredin Maksimovic pulled one back, a reminder that Champions League games rarely drift without punishment. But it felt like consolation, not a turning point.
The final word belonged, fittingly, to another of Fabregas’s young technicians. Deep into stoppage time, Nico Paz slipped a clever ball into Maximo Perrone, and the midfielder finished to seal a 4–1 rout. The scoreline now matched the impression: Como had outplayed, out-thought, and out-finished a regular of this competition.
Baturina calm in the eye of the storm
For all the emotion in the stands, Baturina cut a composed figure afterwards. Speaking to UEFA, he refused to get carried away by his own role in history, stressing that the performance grew from collective intensity and preparation, not occasion-driven adrenaline.
He repeated the theme when talking to CBS Sports Golazo, acknowledging the weight of scoring Como’s first Champions League goal, but steering the conversation quickly towards pragmatism. The knockout rounds remain the target, yet he framed that ambition in simple terms: adapt, compete, survive the group one match at a time.
Different styles, different problems, the same demand – find a way. That was his message.
From European dream to Serie A grind
The celebrations will echo around the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, and Baturina admitted as much, pointing to the pride of a city finally seeing its club on the Champions League stage and winning at the first attempt.
But the schedule offers no time for nostalgia. Como are back to Serie A duty on Monday, hosting Parma in the same stadium that just witnessed their European coming-of-age.
Fabregas now has a new challenge: turn one unforgettable night into a habit.
