Como Sinks Juventus into a Labyrinth of Crisis

COMO, SUNDAY – Como made history by securing their first victory over Juventus in 73 years. The 2-0 advantage was achieved by Cesc Fabregas's team in the seventh week of the 2025-2026 Serie A, on Sunday (19/10/2025), at the Giuseppe Sinigaglia Stadium. This result also marked Juventus's first defeat in the competition this season.

The match between Como and Juventus in the modern era first took place in the Italian Serie A during the 2002-2003 season. In the four previous encounters that occurred in the 21st century, Como was only able to hold Juventus once, while the other three matches ended in defeat.

Those poor results included two games last season, which marked Como's return to Serie A. In the 2024-2025 season, Como suffered back-to-back defeats with scores of 0-3 and 1-2.

Previously, Como last beat Juve in 1952. Como has only beaten Juve four times in the Italian League.

Entering their second consecutive season in Serie A, Como has been playing with increasing maturity. They have accumulated nine points in the first six weeks of this season.

The victory over Juve, the three-star Scudetto winner with over 30 wins, was Como's third positive result of the season. They moved into the European club competition zone with 12 points.

I am pleased to present an important performance today. Although I feel very tired after playing for Argentina, I will still give my best for this jersey (Como).

The team nicknamed "I Lariani" created a new history in their encounters with Juve, starting with a goal from center-back Marc-Oliver Kempf just four minutes into the match. This was the first opportunity generated by the home team, thanks to the creativity of attacking midfielder Nico Paz.

Paz initiated the goal with a corner kick execution strategy using a short pass. After receiving a return pass from midfielder Lucas Da Cunha, Paz delivered a cross to the far post of the Juve goal to reach the ball for Kempf. This marked the second goal for the defender from Jermain this season.

The three points for Como were secured through a quick counterattack concluded by Paz in the 79th minute. It took only 13 seconds after regaining possession from a Juve player for Como to breach Juve's defense for the second time.

The goal only involved three players. They are Da Cunha and Maximo Perrone, the duo of defensive midfielders, and then Paz as the executor of the opportunity with great composure. Paz has scored four goals and provided four assists for I Lariani in the 2025-2026 Italian League.

Paz's performance, who was named Serie A's "Rising Star" last September, not only helped Como defeat Juve for the first time in history. He also lifted Como out of a streak of two consecutive draws in Serie A.

On the other hand, Paz also won the duel between two young stars of Serie A against Juventus winger, Kenan Yildiz. The 21-year-old Paz is from Argentina, while Yildiz, who represents the Turkish national team, has just turned 20.

"I'm happy to have put in an important performance today. Even though I was very tired after playing for Argentina, I still gave my best for this (Como) jersey," Paz told DAZN after the match.

Interestingly, Como made history without the presence of Head Coach Cesc Fabregas. The Spanish tactician is currently serving a one-match ban from accompanying his team due to a strong protest against the referee during the match against Cremonese on September 27.

Fabregas watched his protégés from the stands of the Naratama Stadium, located beside the beautiful Lake Como. In place of Fabregas on the sidelines, assistant coach Dani Guindos never sat down for more than 90 minutes to monitor the actions of his trainees.

Guindos's seemingly tireless actions in giving instructions, along with Fabregas, who was never seen calm from the stands, resulted in an impressive performance for his team. In addition to scoring two goals, the I Lariani squad was able to neutralize Juventus's attacking line.

The visitors were allowed to have more possession (55 percent), but they struggled to break down Como's tight defense.

Juve managed to take 11 shots during the first hour of the match without a single one on target. Como's goalkeeper, Jean Butez, made his first save in the 62nd minute to catch a header from Juve's midfielder, Teun Koopmeiners.

"We always try to play our style of play regardless of the opponent. Fabregas always demands that we continue to improve, and this result won't make us complacent in the coming matches," Perrone said, as reported by Corriere dello Sport.

On the other hand, Juve is increasingly struggling to achieve victory. Not only has their unbeaten record finally come to an end at the shores of Lake Como, but "The Old Lady" has been yearning for a win for more than a month. Most recently, Juve secured three points by defeating Inter Milan, 4-3, on September 13, 2025.

Before succumbing to Como, Juve had to settle for five consecutive matches across all competitions with draws. Juve was held by Hellas Verona, Atalanta, and AC Milan in domestic competitions, while Borussia Dortmund and Villarreal thwarted Juve's ambition for three points in the Champions League.

In fact, Juve has a great opportunity to enliven the competition at the top with three points from Como's home ground. If they win, Juve could match the points tally of Inter, Napoli, and AS Roma, who occupy the top three positions temporarily with a total of 15 points.

Juve's situation will become increasingly difficult as they face two challenging matches ahead. They will visit Real Madrid's home in the Champions League, followed by a match in Rome, specifically at Lazio's home ground.

Referring to the current performance under the management of Igor Tudor, the Old Lady will struggle to bring home three points from those two away games. However, if they fail to win in both matches, Juventus's situation will be thrown out of the competition for European spots in Serie A and the ticket to the knockout stage of the Champions League.

Tudor is disappointed with the performance of his team. "We understand our shortcomings in this match. We need to improve to get out of this difficult situation and return to the right track," he said. (AP)