Como thrashed Lens 9-1 away from home in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday. As a result, they equalled the biggest winning margin in the competition’s history. They also climbed to fourth in the league phase with nine points from four matches.
Victory on this scale came away from home in only Como’s first Champions League campaign. Furthermore, it underlined how quickly Cesc Fabregas’s side moved from debutants to top-eight contenders.
First-half lead
Anastasios Douvikas led the rout with a hat-trick. First, he scored twice before half-time as Como took a 3-0 lead into the break, Reuters reported. Nico Paz added the third goal before the interval. Then, he fired into the roof of the net. That completed a dominant first half for the visitors at Stade Bollaert-Delelis.
Como then struck again shortly after the restart through Lucas Da Cunha. Next, Marc-Oliver Kempf headed home and Mattia Liberali added a fifth on his Champions League debut. Lens goalkeeper Robin Risser saved a Douvikas penalty on 52 minutes. However, the Greece international scored the rebound to make it 6-0. It was a night when everything went Como’s way. Even their set-piece attempts ended in goals.
Ruben Aguilar pulled one back for Lens with a fine volley. But Martin Baturina restored Como’s seven-goal cushion. Then, substitute Matteo Papaccioli slotted in the ninth goal in stoppage time. UEFA named Douvikas, who scored in each of Como’s Champions League games this season, as Player of the Match.
Record margins
Como matched the eight-goal winning margins recorded by Liverpool and Real Madrid. Those came in their 8-0 home victories over Besiktas and Malmo respectively, according to Reuters. They also became only the second team after Bayern Munich to score nine goals in a Champions League match. In addition, they were the first team to score nine away from home in the European Cup since 1971.
Furthermore, Lens suffered the heaviest defeat by a French club in the competition, Reuters reported. In addition, they sit 33rd in the league-phase standings with three points from four matches.
Meanwhile, Como’s night capped a high-scoring Matchday 4 that had already seen PSG’s record night at Villarreal and Barcelona’s 3-0 win over Aston Villa, while on the same second night Fenerbahçe’s 3-2 win over Liverpool ended the visitors’ perfect record in this season’s league phase.
Como followed their 4-1 victory over Manchester United with another emphatic performance, Reuters reported. As a result, they earned a third win from their first four league-phase matches. Their maiden Champions League campaign has now reached its midway point. At that point, the Italian side are firmly in the race for direct qualification to the knockout stage.
What is confirmed is the result and Como’s fourth place on nine points at the midway point. Furthermore, Douvikas’s Player of the Match award is confirmed. However, what is not yet decided is Como’s final league-phase placing, which their four remaining fixtures will determine.
| Order | Scorer | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anastasios Douvikas | Como |
| 2 | Anastasios Douvikas | Como |
| 3 | Nico Paz | Como |
| 4 | Lucas Da Cunha | Como |
| 5 | Marc-Oliver Kempf | Como |
| 6 | Anastasios Douvikas | Como |
| 7 | Mattia Liberali | Como |
| 8 | Ruben Aguilar | Lens |
| 9 | Martin Baturina | Como |
| 10 | Matteo Papaccioli | Como |
