Cesc Fabregas says Barcelona are ‘frightening’ after Como’s Champions League victory

Cesc Fabregas described Barcelona as “frightening” after watching his former club record a 5-1 victory over Feyenoord in the opening round of the Champions League.

Fabregas was speaking after guiding Como to an impressive start in their own European campaign, with the Italian club beating German visitors RB Leipzig 4-1 on Thursday in their first appearance in the competition.

The Como manager praised Barcelona’s performance as well as that of his own players, saying the Catalan side’s quality can make even strong opponents appear poor.

“I watched the Barcelona match yesterday, and I can tell you that Feyenoord are a very good team,” Fabregas said, in comments reported by the Catalan newspaper Mundo Deportivo.

“But Barcelona make you look bad because they find every solution at every moment.”

The former Spain international added: “You can mark them man-to-man, as they tried to do with Rodri or Pedri, but they find solutions from every direction.

“Whoever plays, they have a very high level. The level they are showing at the moment is frightening, frightening.”

Fabregas was also pleased with Como’s display against RB Leipzig, particularly their performance before half-time.

“Overall, it was a good match, especially the first half, when we played at a very high level,” he said.

“We started the second half very well, but after that we had some problems controlling things on the flanks.”

The 38-year-old also explained why he believes Como need to be tactically adaptable as they compete at the highest level.

“In modern football, you have to be ready for everything,” he said. “To be a complete team, you need to master many things.

“There are small matches within matches, and you have to know how to solve certain situations, especially at these levels.”

Fabregas also praised the strength of Spanish coaching, arguing that the large number of Spanish managers working among Europe’s elite is no coincidence.

“I think the presence of so many Spanish coaches among the elite is not a coincidence,” he said.

“From a football perspective, we are the best, because the young players proved that at the World Cup. The level of Spanish coaches is also very high, and they are proving it.

“I will not mention names because you all know them.”