Fàbregas warns Como ahead of Lens trip: 'A crazy atmosphere awaits us'

Cesc Fàbregas has warned his Como side ahead of their Champions League clash with Lens, saying "a crazy atmosphere" awaits them on the road.

The former Spain international played at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis during his time with Monaco as a player. The ex-Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea star now returns to the ground as head coach of Como, who have collected two wins and one defeat in Europe's premier club competition. The Italian side claimed a statement 4-1 victory over Manchester United in their most recent outing in the tournament.

The 39-year-old wants his team to be ready for a high-pressure environment against the Ligue 1 side. Speaking ahead of the game, Fàbregas said: "It's a crazy atmosphere here; I played here two or three times when I was at Monaco. I love nights like this because you can feel the passion even during the warm-up. It will be an extremely interesting and wonderful experience for our players. These are exactly the kind of nights we wanted to experience; if you can't get motivated for these games, you are definitely in the wrong profession."

Fàbregas highlighted Florian Thauvin as a particularly big threat to Como. The experienced winger, who previously played for Udinese in Serie A, returned to France when he joined Lens in August 2025. Speaking about the Frenchman, Fàbregas said: "Thauvin is an incredible player. He was at Marseille, and then we faced him when he was at Udinese. He is a difference-maker, a player of real quality who scores a lot of goals; he is the reference point of this team and we have to watch him very closely."

Lens have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their 16 Champions League matches since a 1-0 win over Arsenal at the old Wembley in November 1998. Among French sides in the history of the European Cup/Champions League since 1955, only Monaco (23 matches, 2016-24) and Marseille (18 matches, 2012-22) have had longer runs.

Como, meanwhile, have scored 10 goals in their first three Champions League matches. That is the highest tally by an Italian team in their first three games in the competition, and the most by any team since Club Brugge scored 12 goals in 1973.