Como rout Manchester United 4-1 in Champions League at Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia
Como defeated Manchester United 4-1 at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia in a Champions League match on 21 October 2026, handing United their heaviest continental loss since 1994 and intensifying pressure on manager Michael Carrick. Nico Paz scored twice and provided the assist for Tasos Douvikas as the hosts led 3-0 by the 57th minute before Jacobo Ramón and Josh Zirkzee added late goals.
The victory came at a sold-out Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, which holds 13,602, a setting the report described as in sight of the Alps and a boat ride from George Clooney’s villa. Cesc Fàbregas’s side were competing under his stewardship in the Champions League for the first time, while the club’s 119-year history contrasted with Manchester United’s 242 Champions League appearances compared with Como’s 62 in total.
Disaster struck United two minutes into the match when Paz curled a shot from the right past Senne Lammens, after an earlier moment when Diogo Dalot had spurned a simple opening following a Matheus Cunha pass. The early concession continued a worrying pattern for United: they became the first English team to concede inside two minutes in consecutive major European matches, following last week’s 2-0 defeat to Atlético Madrid.
Como dominated possession and pressed as a unit, with Bryan Mbeumo among their attacking outlets, while United’s midfield featured Mason Mount and Andrey Santos alongside Bruno Fernandes operating in a false nine role. A penalty appeal after Martin Baturina went to ground was rejected by referee Sven Jablonski, and a Tasaos Douvikas break in the first half was ruled out for offside.
Manchester United’s selection problems were noted: the visitors were missing nine players because of injury, suspension or illness, and Mathijs de Ligt was thrown straight into the team alongside Harry Maguire for his first appearance in 325 days following a serious back injury. Two young players, Tynan Thompson and Jack Fletcher, were named on the bench after each had played in United Under-19s’ 2-1 Youth Cup defeat to Como earlier in the afternoon.
Carrick reshuffled at half-time, replacing Matheus Cunha and Andrey Santos with Carlos Baleba and Amad Diallo and moving Youri Tielemans into central midfield with Fernandes at No 10, but the changes failed to stem Como’s momentum. Four minutes into the second half Paz threaded a pass to Douvikas, who finished to make it 2-0; Paz then added his second to make it 3-0 before Jacobo Ramón headed Kaiki Bruno’s cross in on 76 minutes to extend the lead to four.
United’s supporters began to file out before stoppage time, when Josh Zirkzee scored for the visitors, a finish the report described as not even a consolation. The match was characterised in the report as a comprehensive defeat for Carrick’s side, leaving the manager under increased scrutiny.
Manchester United’s next fixture is against Bournemouth at Old Trafford on Sunday; the result in Lombardy leaves Carrick and his team facing immediate domestic tests and continued attention over their form.