Cesc Fabregas, Simone Verdi and Patrick Cutrone shared their thoughts on Como’s return to Serie after a 21-year wait. Celebrations erupted at the Sinigaglia stadium after their 1-1 draw with Cosenza, earning them the second automatic promotion place and a well-earned place in Italy’s top flight.
Speaking after the match, a number of players and managers shared their excitement about the prospect of playing in Italy’s top flight next season:
FABREGAS – “We fought hard and had a great mentality. Our mindset made the difference; we’ve been stronger than everyone. We battled against all the favorites. The expectations weren’t for direct promotion, but we achieved it because we believed until the end. I feel the emotion of a well-done job, which we had in mind since the first day I arrived. We are very happy, but now the real work begins because the level goes up.”
VERDI – “I came down to Serie B on purpose, to regain Serie A on the field, and thanks to this group, I did it. We deserved this success; this is a wonderful group, and we’re enjoying this evening. The credit goes to the winning mentality that the coach gave us; it made the difference. We never gave up, and we always believed. This is a very ambitious club that wants to achieve important goals.”
CUTRONE – “This means a lot to me. Bringing my hometown team to Serie A is an indescribable emotion because we’ve had an incredible year. Today, we deserved a little more because we created a lot, but I don’t care about that. I dedicate this promotion to my dad, who’s no longer here but was and still is the most important person in my life.”
GOLDANIGA – “I came here with a very specific reason, which was to return to Serie A. It was a great emotion; all the fans have always been close to us, and it’s really exciting to see these people happy. Today wasn’t our best game, but it was normal because we were tired. We arrived a bit cooked, but today it was important to return to Serie A. There will be time to rest and refuel for next year.”
LUDI (Director General) – “We did it, we believed, and the satisfaction is immense. Reaching Serie A is the culmination of a dream. Now we enjoy it, and soon we’ll start thinking about the future. I think today was a good display of sportsmanship, but we still wanted to win. At a certain point, we started to taste the promotion, but until the final whistle, we couldn’t celebrate.”
ROBERTS – “I’m very happy and proud to see the team and all the people working behind the scenes so happy. I always thought we deserved a valid spot for direct promotion, so we’re very excited to have achieved it. It’s nice to see the generation of people who remember the good times of Como in Serie A now being able to compete again with the big Italian teams.”
