Lens vs Como: Caqueret In as Kaiki and Baturina Miss Out, Fabregas's Calculated Gamble

On a night at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis, in the eighty-second minute, there are a few seconds when a coach looks down at his teamsheet and realises his game has already changed. For Cesc Fabregas, this may be that night. Against Lens, his Como are without both Kaiki and Martin Baturina — a wing-back who provides width, and a creative midfielder who injects life into the final third. In their place, Maxence Caqueret has been included. On the teamsheet, it is one change; on the pitch, it is an entirely different story. This 2026/27 cycle is a phase of new identity for Como. Under Fabregas, this club is no longer just a mid-table Serie A side — it stands at a juncture in European competition where it sits just two points behind eighth-placed Bayern Munich. That figure is a statement in itself. A team whose bench holds a coach who has only just stepped into the managerial world, and which has reportedly beaten Manchester United 4-1, is now looking upward in a single-table format. On the other side are Lens, with three points, having slipped out of the play-off places after two consecutive defeats. This match is not just about three points; it is the confluence of two rivers flowing in opposite directions. For me, the biggest story of this match is Baturina's absence. Whenever I have watched Como play in recent years, Baturina has been the player who receives the ball between the lines, turns, and produces a pass that breaks the defence. His absence is not a quantitative loss; it is a qualitative one. And Fabregas has chosen Caqueret in his place — a midfielder whose identity is control, keeping the ball safe, staying calm under pressure. Caqueret and Baturina are not two sides of the same coin; they are different coins. Baturina is creativity; Caqueret is control. This change pushes Como's midfield toward a new balance — toward stability rather than upward risk-taking. Kaiki's absence is a different kind of problem. If he is the wing-back profile implied, his absence directly affects Como's width. Width in football is not just about standing in a line; it is about stretching defences, creating space in the middle, and enabling full-back overlaps. Without Kaiki, Fabregas must either choose a more conservative option or restructure his shape. In both scenarios, Como's attacking width may contract. This is where Fabregas's thinking faces its real test. Lens, after two consecutive defeats, will play at home like a wounded animal. They will sit deep, close spaces, and play on the counter. In such a situation, a control-based midfield carries a known risk: there will be possession, but no incision in the final third. Caqueret's inclusion does not reduce this risk; it makes it more explicit. Fabregas is choosing experience and stability over creative risk. Whether this is the right gamble, only the pitch will tell, but the teamsheet suggests Como will emerge in a more cautious, more controlled avatar than their home identity. I would call this 'Fabregas's compromise.' A coach who believes in creative and aggressive football in his philosophy often compromises his principles when he travels without a key player. This compromise is not always wrong — sometimes it signals maturity — but it is always a risk. Against Lens, themselves in crisis, this compromise could put Como in a position where they dominate the game but not the scoreboard. On the other hand, Lens's story is different. Two defeats, out of the play-off places. This is the moment when a team either fragments or unites. At home, in front of their own crowd, a wounded team is often the most dangerous. They have nothing to lose and everything to win. If Como fail to understand this mentality, their control-based game could become an exercise in emptiness. I have watched many such matches in recent years where data and emotion flow in different directions. Predictions favour Como against Lens — something I have heard many times. But predictions are what appears on the surface. The truth is often different. An away ground, the absence of a key creator, and a wounded home team — all three together weaken the 'favour.' If Como win, it will be proof of Fabregas's tactical maturity. If they lose, it will be a lesson that control and creativity are not the same thing. I should also clarify that the information publicly available about this match is not entirely consistent. The claim of a 4-1 win over Manchester United, and of being two points behind Bayern Munich, suggests a single-table format — yet Lens and Como are both domestic league clubs. This is a puzzle that cannot be accepted without verification. For the match preview, I place these claims in a cautious bracket. What I can say with certainty is this: the absences of Baturina and Kaiki are the most concrete story of this match. Caqueret's inclusion is a control-based solution, but it does not compensate for the loss of creativity. Fabregas knows what he is doing — but whether this gamble works against Lens will depend on how deep Lens sit, and how patiently Como play. At the end of the night, when the lights of the Stade Bollaert-Delelis go out, the scoreboard will say something. But the real story will be in the moment Fabregas steps out of his bench and looks at his teamsheet — and perhaps asks himself whether he made the right compromise. In football, sometimes the biggest defeat is not the one on the scoreboard, but the one a coach inflicts on his own principles. After this night, Como's journey will continue — whether with a win or a loss. But one question will remain: will Fabregas's Como build an identity, or will it compromise its principles at every big moment? This question is not just about this one match; it is about the entire season. And perhaps, that is the real game.