Get Guardian on GoogleComo hinted at another strong season in Serie A on Sunday after seeing off Lazio 2-0 with a performance typical of a club on the rise under Cesc Fabregas.
Goals in each half from Tasos Douvikas and starlet Nico Paz, the latter a stunning free-kick in the 73rd minute, were enough for Como to take all three points at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia.
Como finished 10th last season after reaching the top flight for the first time in over two decades and the ambitious lakeside club invested heavily in the summer.
Financial backing from tobacco giant Djarum means Como will be a force to be reckoned with this term, and they would have won by a bigger margin had Mergim Vojvoda’s powerful strike not smashed off the crossbar four minutes after Paz’s strike.
Lazio are under a transfer ban until January for not respecting Serie A’s financial requirements and were second best all evening.
Valentin Castellanos was denied a leveller just after the hour mark when he was ruled offside after collecting Mario Gila’s long ball over a high Como backline and rolling past Jean Butez.
Sebastiano Luperto’s thumping header salvaged a point for Cagliari in the fourth minute of stoppage time to give the the Sardinian outfit a 1-1 draw with Fiorentina.
Later, Juventus kick off their campaign with the visit of Parma while Atalanta face promoted Pisa in their first league fixture under new coach Ivan Juric.
