Champions League talking points: Are Como the real deal?

Matchday 4 of the UEFA Champions League league phase is complete, bringing the competition to its midway point with the 36-team table starting to take shape. Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid hold perfect four-from-four records at the top, with Arsenal not far behind, while statement wins from Como and Manchester United, for very different reasons, have left both clubs well placed to survive the cut.

Como have been the darlings of Europe all season, adding Wednesday's 9-1 demolition of Lens to earlier victories over RB Leipzig and Manchester United. They sit in Serie A's top four with 37 goals in 14 games across both competitions. Nico Paz, described as the heir to Lionel Messi's Argentina No. 10 shirt, has six goals and seven assists, while Anastasios Douvikas is the tournament's top scorer. Gab Marcotti noted the Lens result was only the second nine-goal performance in the Champions League era and just the third win by an eight-goal margin, achieved with three starters out and the second-best goal difference in the competition.

Rob Dawson argued Como are fast becoming the team nobody wants to face, pointing to how well coached they are under Cesc Fabregas, the flair of Paz within that structure, and a cramped lakeside stadium that makes for an awkward trip. Mark Ogden called them a breath of fresh air in Serie A and Europe, though he cautioned that wealthy Indonesian ownership means it is not quite the fairytale some suggest. Neither writer expects them to win the tournament, with Ogden doubting they even reach the quarterfinals once the big guns stop being surprised in the spring.

Sam Marsden emphasized that Fabregas has built a side far greater than the sum of its parts, noting Douvikas arrived from Celta Vigo after three LaLiga goals in his final season in Spain, Lucas Da Cunha was with the club in Serie B, Luis Milla came from Getafe and Álex Valle was a Barcelona cast off. Marsden, who tipped Como to win Serie A at the start of the season, believes the Champions League is probably a step too far. Marcotti added that only Paz, Trevoh Chalobah and Jesús Rodriguez cost more than 18 million euros, and that closing group games against PSG and Barcelona will provide the reality check. All agreed Fabregas will soon be linked with every major managerial opening.

Manchester United, meanwhile, pulled victory from the jaws of defeat on Tuesday with a 3-2 comeback win over Roma at Old Trafford after trailing 2-0 inside 20 minutes. Roma finished the second half with zero shots on goal and zero touches in United's penalty area, leaving the panel split on whether the result is a platform for manager Michael Carrick, who was reportedly close to being fired a week earlier, or a false dawn.

Ogden placed United's struggles in context: before the Roma win they had played 13 games this season, losing seven and winning just twice, a sequence comparable to Pep Guardiola's one win and nine defeats in 13 games at Manchester City in autumn 2024 and Jurgen Klopp's eight losses in 13 at Liverpool in 2020-21. Those coaches recovered to win big trophies again, but Ogden noted Carrick remains a novice, United have managed one clean sheet all season, and Carlos Baleba's injury is a major blow ahead of Aston Villa's visit this weekend.

Marcotti and Marsden were harsher, arguing the platform itself is rotten regardless of Carrick. Marcotti pointed to ownership figures Jim Ratcliffe, Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox, and noted United's goals included a soft penalty that had to be taken twice and a gift from a Leonardo Balerdi mistake, after a first half in which United produced 0.24 expected goals and one shot on target against a Roma side using its third-choice goalkeeper. Marsden suggested decision-makers have likely been sounding out replacements during the recent nine-game winless run, and that defeat to Villa could force action before the international break.

Bayern Munich also featured in the debate after toughening out a 2-0 win at Atlético Madrid on Tuesday, ending Atleti's run of seven straight LaLiga victories ahead of their weekend meeting with Barcelona. Bayern have looked more human this season, dropping points in the Bundesliga and Champions League, recording their first scoreless game in over a year, a 0-0 at Schalke 04, coping with a lengthy injury list and losing coach Vincent Kompany, who is away from the team after collapsing at practice last week.

The panel still counts Bayern among the favorites. Dawson cited a devastating forward line led by Ballon d'Or winner Harry Kane and last season's narrow semifinal exit to PSG, while Ogden argued minor domestic struggles, no defeats and three draws, may simply reflect better pacing. Marcotti countered that Bayern too often waste the industrial amount of chances they create and beat themselves with silly defensive mistakes, and Marsden noted Augsburg, Viking FK, Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund have all scored twice or more against them recently, making Tuesday's clean sheet, their first in eight games, a welcome start with Luis Díaz and Jamal Musiala currently out.