Como return from the break with a defensive question to answer, not a crisis to manage. Cesc Fabregas’s side were beaten at Frosinone, ending a nine-match unbeaten Serie A run, and the defeat exposed a contrast with the team that finished last season as the division’s strongest defence, having conceded only 29 goals.
A small shift in Como’s numbers
The early figures point to a side that has become easier to breach. Como have allowed six goals across their opening five league fixtures, an average of 1.2 per match, compared with 0.8 over the previous campaign.
Fabregas rejected the suggestion that his team have lost their defensive identity after the Frosinone match. He instead focused on Como’s missed opportunities, saying his players had created four major chances and that he could not punish them simply for failing to convert them. The coach also argued that the whole context needed examining, recalling last season’s defensive record.
The comparison is nevertheless less favourable than he suggested. At the same five-game point in the 2025-26 Serie A season, Como had conceded four times rather than six.
Frosinone end the run
- Como arrived in Frosinone unbeaten in nine consecutive Serie A games.
- Frosinone’s wide players, Kvernadze and Ghedjemis, repeatedly found success in one-versus-one situations and helped decide the contest.
- The loss was Como’s first league defeat without scoring since December 2025.
- It also extended their run without a clean sheet to five Serie A matches, something they had not experienced since rounds two through six of 2025-26.
Those details explain why the setback carries more weight than a single afternoon. The championship remains long, but Como’s previous authority was built on giving opponents very little. That standard has slipped in the opening weeks.
A changed back line and a fuller calendar
There are reasons why Como’s defensive balance has changed. Champions League football has entered the schedule, adding demands that were absent a year ago, while the personnel around the back line is no longer identical.
Only Ramon and Valle remain from last season’s regular defensive quartet. Smolcic and Kempf have made way for Couto, signed from Borussia Dortmund, and Trevoh Chalobah, who arrived from Chelsea.
Chalobah has settled quickly. Apart from one absence, he has started each of Como’s other four matches and completed 90 minutes on every occasion, producing performances in keeping with his experience.
Jacobo Ramon has been involved in Como’s first six games in all competitions, including the Champions League, but has not always been as secure defensively as he was last season.
The full-back roles have also altered the picture. Couto is an attack-minded right-back who often moves inside to join play in central areas. Valle has similar creative instincts on the left, looking to combine and contribute to the build-up. Against Frosinone, the space and duels around the flanks became a particular problem.
Options before Roma visit the Sinigaglia
Fabregas still has room to adjust without sacrificing Como’s attacking ambition. Kaiki Bruno, the Brazilian left-back brought in on loan from Cruzeiro, has started only once so far, against Parma, as he continues his adaptation. His presence gives the coach another option on the left.
The next league test will be an exacting one. Serie A leaders Roma travel to the Sinigaglia after the restart, carrying the league’s second-best attacking record.
For Como, the task is not to recreate last season player for player. It is to restore the collective protection that made them so difficult to play through, while accommodating new signings, a more demanding European calendar and full-backs asked to contribute further forward. Frosinone was a warning rather than a verdict; Roma will show how quickly Fabregas can turn that warning into a correction.
