Como’s European night against Manchester United carried an unexpected image of control: with his side already 4-0 ahead, Cesc Fàbregas told his players to ease off. The Spanish coach was already looking towards the next fixture, trying to protect energy with the contest apparently settled, but he later admitted that the decision sat badly with him after United found a late goal.
Fàbregas accepted responsibility for asking Como to manage the closing stages rather than continue at full intensity. “I regret the final 10 minutes,” he said. “I was the one who told the team to lower the tempo because there is another match and perhaps, at 4-0, we could manage things a little. I told them not to run any more, and perhaps that is what I regret, because I am the first person who always pushes them to fight until the end. That goal hurt me.”
The moment underlined both Como’s growing assurance under their coach and the scale of Manchester United’s problems. Even after their opponents deliberately reduced the pace, United could not prevent a heavy defeat, with their late strike doing little to alter the impression left by the night.
For Fàbregas, the result was another sign of a team advancing through his footballing ideas, though his reaction showed the standards he wants to establish. A four-goal lead did not make the concession feel irrelevant; he viewed it as a departure from the relentless mentality he demands.
United, meanwhile, leave the fixture with another troubling European performance. A club expected to compete at the highest level spent long periods unable to do so, and the fact that Como had already taken their foot off the pedal only sharpened the contrast between the two sides.
