HISTORIC UPSET: CESC FABREGAS LEADS COMO TO FIRST COPPA ITALIA SEMI-FINAL SINCE 1986
Como are through! Discover how Cesc Fabregas’ side beat Napoli on penalties to reach their first Coppa Italia semi-final in 40 years.
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Cesc Fabregas opened up about what he told his Como squad before they stepped up for penalties against Napoli. He’s been there; he knows what that pressure feels like.
Now Como gets Inter in the Coppa Italia semi-final. The last time Como made it this far, it was 1986. They knocked out Verona, who were Serie A champions. This time, they outlasted Napoli after a 1-1 draw at the Maradona, then held their nerve in the shootout.
Martin Baturina got Como in front, but Antonio Vergara pulled Napoli level just after halftime.
Honestly, Fabregas is dragging this team somewhere special.
It’s huge, it’s historic, but Fabregas isn’t letting anyone get carried away. “There’s another big game coming up. Save the celebrations for the end of the season,” he said.
It’s tough to come down from a night like that, though. They put on some music for ten minutes in the locker room, let it sink in, then flipped the switch. The weekend’s coming, and they want another win.
There was a nervy moment when Jacobo Ramon escaped a second yellow after fouling Rasmus Hojlund. Fabregas saw the risk and pulled him off right away.
“If he makes another foul, he’s off,” Fabregas said. “He’s only 20, still learning. First pro season. When you’re that young, you don’t feel pressure the same way, but sometimes you relax too much.”
He didn’t want to risk playing a man down.
The penalties had their drama. Lukaku missed, Butez stopped Lobotka, and Milinkovic-Savic came up big against Perrone.
Fabregas was honest about the performance. “We were good in the first half, not so much in the second. That keeps happening. We need to fix it.”
He liked that Como came out to attack, not just to cling on. They defended differently, dropping a little deeper because Napoli’s got talent and they can open you up if you’re too aggressive.
“To survive in Serie A, you need a striker like Hojlund,” Fabregas said. Napoli had their injury problems, but so did Como earlier in the year. The squad’s young, but they’re going for it.
At times, they switched to five at the back. Fabregas reminded everyone, “We’re Como, not a big club; we have to lock things down sometimes.”
Before the penalties, Fabregas told his players to soak it all in. Yeah, it was tense, but he wanted them to enjoy it.
“I thanked them for giving me this chance as a coach. Most of them had never faced something like this. I wanted them to believe in themselves, to enjoy it. I’ve been in Napoli’s shoes, the favourites. That brings its own fear. We were also lucky to go first in the shootout; that helped. I thanked them again; they gave everything. Besides Moreno, Morata, and Alberto, our average age is 22.”
Fabregas knows what’s next: stay humble, keep grinding. That’s three wins in a row for Como.
The semi-final is two legs.
On the other side, it’s Atalanta against either Bologna or Lazio.
THE 2028 VISION: UNEARTHING THE LONG-TERM BLUEPRINT TO KEEP LUCIANO SPALLETTI IN TURIN
Juventus are going all-in on Luciano Spalletti: Read about the 2028 contract offer, the Galatasaray fallout, and Serie A top-four hopes.
Juventus isn’t wasting any time. Even after crashing out of the Champions League against Galatasaray, they’re pushing hard to lock Luciano Spalletti into a long-term deal. The board just wrapped up a few important contract renewals, and now they want to keep Spalletti around until 2028. The goal? Give the club some real direction and stability while they turn their focus fully to domestic trophies and building for the future.
They’re not just thinking about Spalletti, either. Juventus has already nailed down new contracts for Kenan Yildiz, Carlo Pinsoglio, and Weston McKennie. Talks are rolling with captain Manuel Locatelli and Dusan Vlahovic, too. The message from the top is loud and clear: Spalletti, who only arrived at the end of October, is at the centre of everything now. His short-term deal is up in June, but the club wants him to lead the rebuild.
It’s not just talk. The board is pushing for a two-year extension – no more flirting; this is a full-court press. Spalletti has managed 27 games so far, picked up 14 wins, and drawn seven. The recent Champions League exit stings, but it hasn’t changed the club’s mind. They want him to sign on for two more years, aiming for a handshake by mid-March and then the paperwork soon after. Champions League qualification didn’t factor into their decision at all. Meetings could even happen this week if things move fast.
For Spalletti, it’s not just about the money. He wants to build something real in Turin, especially after that wild 7-5 defeat to Galatasaray. Even with a 3-2 win in the second leg after leading 3-0, only to have everything fall apart after Lloyd Kelly’s red card, the ending was brutal. Extra-time goals from Victor Osimhen and Baris Yilmaz finished the job, and Juventus’s European hopes went up in smoke.
Now, both Spalletti and the club want to settle things quickly. He wants a clear plan for the future and some new signings, and he’s expected to earn between €4 million and €5 million a year. For him, the project on the pitch comes first.
With 11 games left in Serie A and the top four still up for grabs, Juventus needs a lift after their European letdown. Right now, they’re 6th with 47 points, just behind Como, Roma, and Napoli. It’s tight, but the club sees Spalletti as the right man for the job.
The big conversations ahead will focus on squad building and investments. By tying down both the coach and several core players before summer, Juventus is trying to set up a united front ahead of the transfer window. They’re betting that experience and a clear plan can get them back where they want to be.
THE MCTOMINAY VOID: WHY NAPOLI STATISTICALLY STRUGGLE WHENEVER THEIR SCOTTISH STAR IS SIDELINED
With Scott McTominay sidelined by tendon inflammation, Napoli relied on a late Lukaku strike to keep their top-four hopes alive.
Napoli finally got a win without Scott McTominay, thanks to a wild stoppage-time goal against bottom-of-the-table Hellas Verona on Saturday. It’s the first time all season they’ve managed a victory without him.
McTominay missed his fourth straight game for Gli Azzurri. He’s been out since aggravating an injury in that 3-2 win over Genoa back on February 7. Right now, Napoli aren’t taking any risks with their star midfielder. He’s still dealing with tendon inflammation between his hamstring and groin, which has kept him from really training at full speed.
There’s talk in Italy that McTominay could be back for the Torino match on Friday. Scotland manager Steve Clarke has his fingers crossed, hoping his 29-year-old midfielder will be fit in time for friendlies against Japan and the Ivory Coast later this month. That’s when Scotland’s World Cup prep really kicks off.
Napoli have looked lost without McTominay. They hadn’t won any of the four games he missed, including a 1-0 loss to Torino back in October when he was out with an ankle strain.
But they finally broke that bad run in Verona. Romelu Lukaku came off the bench and buried a huge winner in the 95th minute, after Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro had cancelled out Rasmus Hojlund’s early goal for Napoli.
The win keeps Napoli third in Serie A. They’re 14 points behind Inter Milan, so the title is probably out of reach, but they’re still fighting for a Champions League spot.
McTominay wasn’t the only Scot involved. There were actually two Scotland internationals on the pitch at the Marcantonio Bentegodi Stadium. Kieron Bowie played the whole game for Verona and nearly put his team ahead just minutes before Lukaku’s winner. The former Hibs man, who netted his old club a £7 million transfer fee in January, got on the end of a deep cross. Napoli’s keeper Alex Meret missed it, but Bowie, stretching at a tight angle, couldn’t steer the ball home. It rolled right across the empty goal.
Things went from bad to worse for Bowie. Moments later, he was marking Lukaku in the Verona box. The Belgian shrugged him off and slotted in the winning goal. Another tough blow for Verona, who are now bottom of the table, nine points from safety with 11 games left, and they’ve played a game more than everyone they’re chasing.
Billy Gilmour also got a run for Napoli, coming on with Lukaku in the 73rd minute. He earned praise from the Italian media for giving Napoli a late boost. This was only his second appearance off the bench since coming back from nearly four months out with a groin injury. He also played in the 2-2 draw against Roma on February 15.
