Fabregas dismisses Man United job talk as Como prepare for historic European clash

Cesc Fabregas has refused to entertain questions about replacing Michael Carrick at Manchester United, insisting the speculation is disrespectful to the Old Trafford manager as Como prepare to host the English club in the Champions League at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia on Wednesday.

“As you can understand I won’t answer that question because I think that’s not a very nice question,” Fabregas said. “I don’t think that shows enough respect to a great footballer and manager like Michael Carrick at the helm of a wonderful Manchester United side.”

Fabregas also pushed back on the narrative that United are in crisis, pointing out that Carrick guided the club back into the Champions League for the first time in several years last season. “Last year he did really well bringing Manchester United back to where they belong, which is the Champions League, for the first time in many years, so not everything is that bad,” he said. “It’s a big honour to host them for the first time in our history.”

The former Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea midfielder took charge of Como after retiring from playing in Lombardy and has overseen a remarkable transformation at the club. He guided them back into Serie A in 2024 following a 21-year absence, then secured European qualification for the first time in the club’s history last season.

Como marked their Champions League debut with an impressive 4-1 victory over RB Leipzig before suffering a 3-2 defeat at Feyenoord. Wednesday’s fixture against United is comfortably the biggest European night in the club’s history, though Fabregas was keen to frame it as a step in a longer journey.

“I arrived here over four years ago as a player and I finished my career here,” he said. “If you see what I saw when I came here and what it is now, it’s completely different. It’s not even night and day. It’s like we are in another world and it happened very, very fast. That’s why sometimes we need to touch base, be humble, keep doing what we’re doing. There’s a lot to do, a lot to learn.”

Fabregas noted his familiarity with the United setup, highlighting his long association with assistant Steve Holland from their time together at Chelsea, and expressed clear admiration for the opposition. “Man United is a historical club that I know very, very well,” he said. “They have incredible players, good staff.”

Heavy rain is forecast for the lakeside venue, adding another layer of intrigue to what Fabregas described as “a historic day once again for the club, the city of Como and fanbase”.