Feyenoord host Como in Champions League matchday-two encounter

Weeks after making contrasting starts to their Champions League campaigns, Feyenoord and debutants Como face off at De Kuip in Wednesday's matchday two encounter.

Cesc Fabregas's men thrashed RB Leipzig 4-1 in their maiden appearance in the competition, while the Rotterdam side were annihilated 5-1 at Camp Nou by Barcelona.

Match preview

Something appears to have clicked for Feyenoord since they were handed a 5-1 thrashing in Catalonia a month ago in their Champions League opener.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst's men were outclassed by the defending La Liga champions and one of the competition's favourites, but they have since been flawless.

Three consecutive league victories have propelled them to the top of the embryonic Eredivisie table, with Feyenoord scoring seven against PEC Zwolle, five in their success over FC Utrecht and two to end AZ Alkmaar's seven-month top-flight unbeaten streak without conceding in any of those matches.

Returning to continental action this week, the new Eredivisie leaders will seek to extend their winning streak against one of the competition's most tactically astute teams and bounce back from their matchday-one defeat.

That outcome, however, is contingent on improving a miserable record of one victory in seven meetings with Italian sides, having most recently lost 2-0 and 2-1 to Inter Milan in the round of 16 during the 2024-25 season.

The absence of any guarantees for De Stadionclub, who currently sit 33rd in the 36-team standings, adds further intrigue before they face the debuting Serie A side.

Having entered the Leipzig match after collecting seven points from their opening three Italian top-flight fixtures, Fabregas's men have since beaten Parma 2-1, lost 2-0 to promoted Frosinone and failed to score against a Roma side that played the final 44 minutes with 10 men following Donyell Malen's dismissal.

Sunday's draw at the Sinigaglia was Serie A's first goalless encounter of the season, ending a 53-match run without a 0-0 result at the start of the campaign.

Interestingly, that means the Lombardy outfit have failed to find the net in consecutive league matches for the first time since December 2025, when they lost to Inter (4-0) and Roma (1-0), and they now head into Wednesday looking to avoid going three consecutive games without scoring in all competitions for the first time under Fabregas.

Indeed, the Biancoblu will aim to avoid that outcome as the fifth-placed side in the league phase seek to retain their coveted top-eight berth after matchday two concludes.

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The Rotterdam outfit are far from a one-man attacking force, though, with Gjivai Zechiel, Anis Hadj Moussa and Luciano Valente all capable of producing match-winning contributions.

Despite their attacking threat, the Stadium Club are without Thomas Beelen (broken leg), Jordan Bos (knee), Bart Nieuwkoop (knee), Reiss Nelson (muscle), Gijs Smal (ankle) and Shaqueel van Persie, while Goncalo Borges (knock), Tsuyoshi Watanabe (leg) and Jakub Moder (knee) are doubtful.

Apart from Moise Kean, who sustained a leg injury during the international break, the Serie A side have a healthy squad for their trip to Rotterdam.

However, Maxence Caqueret, Jayden Addai, Mauro Vigorito, Adrian Lahdo, Willy Kambwala and Edoardo Goldaniga are not included in the squad and will therefore be unavailable on Wednesday.

Martin Baturina — scorer of Como's first-ever Champions League goal and provider of another — is likely to feature alongside star playmaker Nico Paz, who registered two assists against Leipzig, while Assane Diao and Anastasios Douvikas could complete a threatening front four.

Feyenoord possible starting lineup:

Ernst; Read, St Juste, Marmol, Lopez; Zechiel, Vanhoutte, Targhalline; Hadj Moussa, Ferri, Valente

Como possible starting lineup:

Butez; Couto, Ramon, Chalobah, Valle; Milla, Da Cunha; Diao, Paz, Baturina; Douvikas

We say: Feyenoord 2-2 Como

Both teams have enough attacking quality to exploit the other's defensive vulnerabilities, pointing to an entertaining encounter at De Kuip.

Feyenoord's domestic resurgence makes them difficult to oppose, but Como's intelligence in possession and dangerous supporting cast could earn the debutants another valuable Champions League result.