Assane Diao’s return to prominence has given Como another decisive thread in their developing Serie A story. The Senegal international has made an immediate impact in the league, with two goals and one assist, while his first Champions League appearance brought a goal for both player and club. After injury interrupted a promising first year at the club, the 21-year-old is again carrying weight on the right flank — and Cesc Fabregas sees a player learning to influence matches beyond his final-third numbers.
Diao finds his place for club and country
Diao has started both of Senegal’s recent matches, a significant step for a player who left his country of birth at the age of three and grew up in Spain after being adopted there.
His club season took shape after the opening match at Udinese. He began that afternoon on the bench, but his introduction altered the contest and he has remained in the side since. From the right, he has become a regular outlet for Como, using acceleration, close control and sudden changes of direction to unsettle opposing defences.
- He has scored twice and supplied one assist in Serie A this season.
- He marked his Champions League debut with a goal, in Como’s first appearance in the competition.
- He has completed 16 successful dribbles across five league matches, the highest total in the division.
- Genoa’s Junior Messias is level with him on 16 successful dribbles.
- Mastantuono follows on 14, with Kvernadze and Laurienté on 12 each.
- Como’s Nico Paz and his compatriot Soulé have each reached 10.
Fabregas values the work without the ball
The most encouraging aspect for Como is not simply Diao’s ability to beat a defender. Fabregas has seen greater responsibility in the winger’s game: more patience, a clearer sense of when to drive forward and when to retain possession, and a stronger contribution in defensive phases.
Rather than attacking every situation at full speed, Diao has increasingly looked for a team-mate when Como need to move up the pitch or relieve pressure. That development was particularly clear after the match against Genoa, when he scored twice.
Fabregas said: “This was Diao’s most complete performance since joining Como. We have to develop young players. They are 20, and it is normal for them to have one match worth an eight and another worth a five. Today I really liked his defensive work. If he improves in that area, he can become a top player.”
Como’s attacking structure has helped make that progress visible. Diao operates alongside Paz through central areas and Baturina on the left, forming a young attacking line with considerable individual quality.
- Como have more players born in 2003 or later with at least one Serie A goal and one assist than any other club: Diao, Paz and Baturina.
- Only Inter, with 14.5 expected goals, and Roma, with 12.9, have produced a higher expected-goals figure than Como’s 9.4.
- Messias’s dribbling output has not brought Genoa the same return in points as Diao’s influence has brought Como.
From last season’s injury setback to a new contract plan
Diao joined Como in January 2025, during a winter window in which the club chose to accelerate its project. Having returned to Serie A after 21 years away, Como gradually moved clear of the lower reaches of the table in the second half of that campaign and eventually finished tenth.
Much of that improvement was linked to Diao’s immediate contribution. Between January and April, he scored eight goals in 15 appearances. Then, on 23 April, he suffered a stress fracture to the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during training. Surgery ended his season early.
The more damaging blow came in the summer, when a serious recurrence disrupted almost the entire following campaign. After he returned in December 2025, he suffered another setback against Roma at the Olimpico. His powerful physique had been affected by a fragmented preparation, and he was forced out again.
Neither Fabregas nor the club allowed those interruptions to alter their belief in him. Interest arrived from leading clubs during the summer, but Como are preparing to protect their investment with a proposed extension running until 2031.
For Diao, the difficult period now appears to be giving way to a more complete phase of his career. His pace and dribbling remain his most visible qualities, but Como’s season will be shaped just as much by the maturity he is beginning to show within Fabregas’s side.
