Match report
18 October 2026
Stadio Artemio Franchi, Florence
- Referee
- Marco Di Bello
Starting lineups
Fiorentina
De Gea · Drăgușin · Pongračić · Jiménez · Njie · Ndour · Gonçalves · Mastantuono · Pellegrino · Viery · Fagioli
Head coach: Paolo Vanoli
Como 1907
Butez · Smolčić · Kempf · Chalobah · Valle · Milla · Da Cunha · Liberali · Paz · Caqueret · Douvikas
Head coach: Cesc Fàbregas
Used substitutes
Ramón · Kaiki · Perrone · Ricci · Kambwala
What happened
Como won 3–1 in Florence, but for a few uncomfortable minutes a two-goal lead looked terribly fragile. Fiorentina had pulled one back, had an equalizer ruled out and then missed another chance to draw level. Como needed something more convincing than a glance at the clock.
They got it from Nico Paz and Tasos Douvikas. Paz accelerated and released his striker; Douvikas finished through David de Gea’s legs for 3–1. That was the difference between protecting a narrow advantage and giving themselves room to play.
Liberali takes his chance
Fàbregas handed Mattia Liberali his Serie A debut for Como, and the reward arrived after 32 minutes: a curling left-footed finish from the edge of the area. Some introductions take a while. This one went straight into the scorebook.
A lovely first goal gives us a reason to want to see more of Liberali. It doesn’t settle his place in the team, or tell us how he’ll cope when opponents know him better. For now, he has made the next selection conversation considerably more interesting.
Four minutes later, Álex Valle’s delivery found Paz for the second. His header is worth dwelling on: Como need him arriving to finish chances as well as making them. This time he did both jobs in the same match.
The Como view
Marin Pongračić scored before the break. His next effort was disallowed for offside, and Njie missed a lob early in the second half. Those were real openings, not details to brush away because Como eventually won.
Douvikas’s 56th-minute goal changed the task. At 2–1, one mistake could wipe out the lead. At 3–1, Como could choose their moments with a little more patience. Njie later hit the post, a reminder that the defensive work still deserves scrutiny.
The encouraging part is the range of threats: Liberali shooting from outside the area, Paz attacking a cross, Douvikas running onto a pass. Three different finishes give the opposition three different problems. That is a much better conversation to be having than simply asking who will rescue the attack.
Bottom line
Willy Kambwala also made his Como debut. Next comes Manchester United at the Sinigaglia on Wednesday, October 21. Fàbregas goes into that game with a win, a new scorer to consider and a few defensive moments he’ll want to put right. Would you give Liberali another start?