Could the former England international rebuild his career at one of the most ambitious and attractive projects in world football?
A couple of weeks before Dele Alli started training with Como, the former England international was spotted in the stands at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia for the Serie A clash with Roma.
Sinigaglia is not a particularly impressive structure in itself. It's neither big nor beautiful – but the backdrop is breathtaking. The stadium – which Como couldn't even use for the first few weeks of the season because of construction work required to make it compatible with Serie A regulations – is located right on the edge of one of the most spectacular lakes in the world, a natural wonder long associated with stunning scenery and celebrity visitors.
Consequently, Dele wasn't even the most famous face in the crowd on December 15. Hollywood stars Michael Fassbender, Keira Knightley and Adrien Brody were also among the 10,376 people in attendance – and nobody was in the least bit surprised. Because this is the wonderful world of Como 1907: a small club with big ambitions that might just have sufficient pulling power to become a major force in Serie A.
'No crest, no academy, no training pitches'
After Como had claimed their first league win in more than two-and-a-half months by beating Roma 2-0 with injury-time goals from Alessandro Gabrielloni and Nico Paz, coach Cesc Fabregas was understandably reluctant to be drawn too much on the potential signing of Dele. Firstly, nothing had yet been finalised with the ex-Tottenham star. And secondly, Fabregas didn't want to distract from what had been a fantastic performance from his players.
"I only got to know Dele yesterday," the former Arsenal midfielder told reporters. "I don’t want to talk much about this, but perhaps there's a chance that he will start training with us after Christmas. Let’s see. It would be to help him get in shape and nothing more. For now, we must enjoy this win. We must talk about Como, Gabrielloni and the lads. This is the most important thing."
He had a point. Como were the story of the day and Gabrielloni undeniably deserved to dominate the headlines. In a way, the veteran striker personifies the club’s progress over the past six seasons. With his 93rd-minute goal against Roma, Gabrielloni became just the fifth man in the history of Italian football to score in every league from Serie D to Serie A with the same side – and the scenes which followed were absolutely beautiful.
"An incredible joy!" he enthused in his post-match interview with . "I couldn't have imagined being here even just a few years ago!"
Gabrielloni joined Como in 2017. He remembers the dark days – just after the club had gone bankrupt for the second time this century. However, everything started to change after the 2019 takeover by SENT Entertainment, which is controlled by the Djarum Group, an Indonesian conglomerate led by the Harton brothers, Robert Budi and Michael Bambang.
Former Chelsea midfielder Dennis Wise was initially brought on board in an advisory role before being made CEO in 2021, as slow, steady and symbiotic progress was made, both from a structural and sporting perspective.
"When we arrived," Wise explained, "we had no crest, no academy and no training pitches: we had to rent everything. Now, we have everything."
Advertisement'I didn't care about the money'
Wise also played a pivotal role in Fabregas' shock move to Como in the summer of 2022 – at a time when the club was still in Serie B. "Dennis was the most convincing [of the club directors I spoke to]," the midfielder explained at the time. "I didn't care about the money. I just wanted to join a project that excited me. I see a long-term future for this club."
There were clearly significant financial factors at play, with Fabregas becoming a shareholder in the club upon his arrival (just a few short weeks before his former Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry followed suit), but the World Cup winner was also undeniably motivated by the prospect of a clear path into management.
His eventual appointment as first-team boss in November 2023 still came as something of a surprise – Como had made a decent start to the season under Moreno Longo – but it had always been part of the long-term plan. It just arrived a little sooner than everyone expected.
Fabregas, who had been coaching the club's Primavera (Under-19s) since retiring at the end of the 2022-23 season, didn't even have the requisite qualifications at the time to take the title of head coach on a permanent basis. Consequently, Osian Roberts was installed in a caretaker capacity, with Fabregas formally serving as one of the Welshman's assistants.
'Do you want to go to Ibiza?!'
However, it was obvious for the remainder of the 2023-24 season that Fabregas was the one calling the shots. He even promised the players to pay for a trip to Ibiza if they secured promotion to Italy's top flight – and he proved true to his word.
"No sooner had he said it, than it was done," centre-forward Patrick Cutrone revealed in an interview with . "A few hours after the game, we were on the plane!"
Not that Cutrone had doubted Fabregas for a second. "We have bonded a lot with the mister (coach)," he explained. "With nine games to go, we went on a retreat in Marbella, Spain. He told us: 'We can win all the remaining games and go straight to Serie A. If you believe in it, we can do it.' And from that day on we got more points than anyone else. That moment gave us the mental strength to do what we did.
"But right from the start he was very good at getting into the role of manager, he always told us he had been coached by the best, and that he had studied them. And why not learn from Pep Guardiola? Or Jose Mourinho? Or Antonio Conte? Or Arsene Wenger?
"He was very helpful, he always gave us great advice on everything. His work went beyond the pitch, becoming fundamental off it too."
'Thierry Henry in the Como dressing room!'
Despite all of the good work done behind the scenes by Fabregas, and all of the money invested in the club by the Hartono brothers, promotion still felt surreal to Cutrone. The striker had been tipped to do great things at AC Milan, after breaking into the senior side as a teenager all the way back in 2017, but his career had unravelled after an ill-advised move to Wolves.
So, after one failed loan deal after another, he went home, to Como, and fired Fabregas' side to promotion with 14 goals in 32 games.
"When the referee blew the final whistle against Consenza, I couldn't process anything," he told . "The fans entered the field and overwhelmed me. But I managed to find my brother and my mother in the crowd. We hugged each other and burst into tears because, two years ago, when my father passed away, we weren't doing very well. It was a beautiful moment.
"Then, one of the last things I ever expected to see: Thierry Henry in the Como dressing room! I was amazed. He came towards me and hugged me three or four times. I didn't know what to do. It was Henry, an icon of world football! Seeing him in our dressing room had a profound effect on me, but then we went back to the pitch and he presented me with the award for Best Player of the Serie B season… Henry! Crazy!
"After that, I turned around and there was Jamie Vardy. Just like that, randomly. We spoke for 30 seconds and he congratulated me, and vice versa for Leicester's promotion."