Como made Champions League history with a remarkable 9-1 win at RC Lens, while Napoli’s campaign suffered another setback as they were beaten 4-1 by FC Porto.
Both matches kicked off at 20.00 GMT (21.00 CET), with Napoli visiting Francesco Farioli’s FC Porto and Como travelling to meet Florian Thauvin’s Lens.
The results leave Napoli’s European hopes hanging by a thread. They had finally collected their first points in the competition by beating Bodo/Glimt 4-3, but arrived in Portugal after a 2-0 Serie A defeat by Juventus.
Max Allegri had admitted Napoli have “limitations” following the 4-1 loss to FC Porto, adding: “These are the mistakes that cost you matches.”
FC Porto are top of their domestic league but had lost all three of their previous Champions League matches before facing Napoli.
Napoli briefly appeared to regain their composure with Scott McTominay, but poor defending at set plays undermined them. They allowed another completely unmarked header from a corner, while a chaotic set-piece also saw Rafa Marin make a crucial chest block from five yards to deny Alberto Costa.
Porto then increased the pressure. Santiago Gimenez played Gabriel Veiga through one-on-one with Alex Meret, and Veiga finished into the net. He later struck the bar from the edge of the box, while Gimenez scuffed another chance into Meret’s arms.
Pepe sent a half-volley wide from a promising position, before Porto created another counter-attack. Samu chose to shoot rather than pass, but his effort was too weak to beat Meret.
There was little respite for Napoli. Rafa Marin was dismissed after bringing down Samu on the counter-attack with “zero attempt to play the ball”, while the visitors waited before making changes.
When they eventually responded, Giovane and Noa Lang replaced Zambo Anguissa and Vergara. Inbeom Hwang and Fofana also came on for Gabriel Veiga and Pepe, while Lucca replaced Politano “a bit late”. The tired Napoli side continued to struggle.
Como’s victory was even more emphatic. Tasos Douvikas scored a hat-trick and 18-year-old Matteo Papaccioli found the net on his debut, after running onto a pass from Liberali and celebrating by embracing Cesc Fabregas.
Douvikas was later replaced to allow Papaccioli to come on, with Como’s remarkable scoreline continuing to grow. One goal came from a corner routine that left Aguilar unmarked, allowing him to volley into the far bottom corner from 12 yards.
Another saw Liberali sprint down the right before beating the goalkeeper with an angled drive. Como also came close to a ninth goal when Yan Couto could not keep his volley down at the back post.
Fabregas said the 9-1 victory was “a wonderful night for Como, but we need to keep our feet on the ground”. The result strengthens their Champions League ambitions after winning both home matches, although they had previously lost away to Feyenoord.
