Como rout Lens 9-1 in Champions League as Fabregas urges players to stay humble
Como thrashed RC Lens 9-1 away in the Champions League on 2026-11-05, and coach Cesc Fabregas urged his players to keep their feet on the ground. Fabregas said, "It has been a great night for Como, for all our fans, and for many of the young players who are just starting their careers," adding, "But we have to keep our feet on the ground, stay humble, and keep working hard. This is something we must always learn."
The nine-goal haul was a Champions League landmark: Como became the first team to score nine goals away from home in the competition's history, and the eight-goal winning margin equalled the biggest in the tournament, previously achieved by Liverpool against Besiktas in 2007 and Real Madrid against Malmo in 2015. The result moved Como up to fourth in the league-phase standings. Fabregas warned that the scale of the win must not breed complacency, saying, "We must learn this now so we don't buy into our own hype or think that the job is already done," and, "We have to learn to say: 'Okay, it was a good day, let's move forward and try to keep putting in good performances.'"
The Lens victory marked Como's first Champions League away win in what is the club's debut campaign in European competition. Como had opened their group with 4-1 wins over RB Leipzig and Manchester United before suffering a 3-2 defeat to Feyenoord. The dominant scoreline at Lens represented a continuation of an unexpectedly strong run in Europe for the newcomers.
Tasos Douvikas was central to the result, scoring a hat-trick to become the first Como player to register that feat in European competition and only the third Greek international to score a Champions League hat-trick. Douvikas has now found the net in all four of Como's Champions League matches. Nico Paz contributed with a goal and two assists in the match.
Additional goals came from Lucas Da Cunha, Marc-Oliver Kempf, Mattia Liberali, Martin Baturina and teenage debutant Matteo Papaccioli. Como's overall Champions League tally has reached 19 goals, recorded as one fewer than Paris Saint-Germain in the competition's scoring list as provided.
Domestically, Como sit fourth in Serie A with 23 points from 10 matches and have a six-match winning run across all competitions. Inter, currently second in the table, are scheduled to visit Como in a crucial Serie A meeting on Sunday.
There remains more to play for in Europe, with AEK Athens, Real Betis, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona still to come in Como's Champions League programme; Fabregas stressed the Lens result should be enjoyed without allowing it to distract from those upcoming challenges.
