Cesc Fabregas is determined to take Como to Serie A after taking over as boss at the Italian club.
The former Arsenal, Chelsea and Barcelona midfielder, who is an investor in the club along with Thierry Henry, replaced Moreno Longo as interim boss on Monday in what is his first managerial position.
He ended his playing career in the lakeside city last season and was coach of the club’s under-19s before getting the top job.
Como are a club on the rise, having won back-to-back promotions and currently sit sixth in Serie B following a 2019 takeover.
The Spaniard says he does not see the position as a stepping stone for a Premier League job, but a long-term project to get them to the top tier in Italy.
“Obviously, now it is one of the main objectives, 100 per cent,” he said at Web Summit in Lisbon. “Whatever my role is I will always give my best.
“When I joined the club one of the main objectives was to become the coach of Como 1907, I didn’t expect it to come so soon because I retired a little bit earlier, I could still be playing.
“It is an opportunity for me. It is a long-term project, I am not here for two days or two months, it is a long thing. I trust the club, I trust the people, my family has found happiness in Como.
View this post on Instagram“I feel great, I feel ready. This is something that happened very quickly in the last couple of days.
“I have a lot of respect for the manager that was in charge for the last year and a half. I am used to the pressure, I am used to the requirements that the club wants, I am looking forward to it, it is very, very exciting.”
Mirwan Suwarso, representative of the Como ownership group, said they sacked Longo because data showed they were regressing ahead of the January transfer window.
He has grand plans to turn Como into the “ultimate soccer tourism destination”.
“We have to rely on data and it showed that as we are heading towards the transfer window we are actually regressing in terms of our performance,” he said.
“So instead of investing heavily in the transfer window in the wrong bloke we had to fix it so that is why we pulled the trigger.
“When we stumbled upon the football club in Como we realised we had a great opportunity. Como is a great destination for tourism but at the same time there is nothing around it.
“So our goal is to build the ultimate soccer tourism destination in the world and Lake Como is the perfect setting for it. It shows, we have been growing extensively.”
Messi 'will be our No.10 in 2026', hopes Inter Miami chief Mas
Inter Miami fully expect Lionel Messi to remain at the club beyond his current contract ahead of the 2026 MLS season.
Those were the words of Miami's club managing owner, Jorge Mas, who was speaking to the media following Gerardo Martino's resignation earlier on Friday.
Messi joined the MLS side in July 2023 on a two-and-a-half-year contract, leading the Herons to the Supporters' Shield and Leagues Cup during his time in the United States so far.
His current deal is due to expire at the end of next year, though Mas made clear his desire to see Messi remain with the Herons at Miami Freedom Park, the club's new stadium that will open in 2026.
"He’s under contract through 2025. Leo and I will sit, and we’ll discuss the future,” Mas said.
“As I’ve said before, and I will repeat it now: I fully expect that in the opening of our new stadium in 2026 in Miami and the opening of our 2026 season, hopefully after a trophy-laden 2025 season, that Lionel Messi will be our No. 10.”
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
Man United could be without Toone until Christmas, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
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