Como midfielder Martin Baturina closed out his pre-season against Liverpool with the kind of exposure that a 23-year-old Croatian building a Serie A reputation needs — but the more consequential developments around him are now happening in the transfer market rather than on the training pitch.
Baturina finished 2025-26 with six goals and three assists across 29 Serie A appearances, an average rating of 7.10 that placed him among the more consistent creative midfielders in the division. Como finished fourth with 71 points from 38 matches, a record of 20 wins, 11 draws, and seven defeats, conceding only 29 goals all season. That defensive solidity gave Fàbregas's system its foundation; Baturina's output in the final third gave it its edge. The question heading into 2026-27 is whether the squad around him will be stronger, and the early transfer activity suggests Cesc Fàbregas is determined to find out.
Como have opened talks over a move for Samuele Ricci, with Milan holding firm on any permanent sale, and have submitted an offer to Fiorentina for Moise Kean. The Kean pursuit in particular signals intent: a physical striker capable of converting the kind of chances that a midfielder with Baturina's delivery profile creates. His three assists last season came from a squad that, for stretches, lacked a reliable focal point in attack. A player of Kean's profile would change that arithmetic.
The pre-season itself offered useful data points. Como drew 0-0 with Liverpool in one fixture at Anfield, with Gakpo and Jacquet deciding a second match in Liverpool's favour. Neither result carries competitive weight, but playing against that level of opposition — and not being embarrassed — confirms that Fàbregas's tactical structure translates beyond Serie A. For Baturina specifically, the exposure to high-pressing, high-intensity European opposition is the kind of preparation that sharpens a player whose AI potential rating sits at 82 out of 100, against a current overall of 75.
That gap between present and ceiling is the most interesting number attached to Baturina right now. At 23, with a full season of fourth-place calcio behind him and a coach who has consistently found ways to use him, the trajectory is clear. What accelerates it is competition for his position, the quality of teammates creating space for him to exploit, and the level of opposition he faces week to week. If Como land Ricci and Kean, all three conditions improve simultaneously.
The window is open. Baturina's summer has been productive. Whether Como's business matches that productivity will define how much further he moves toward that ceiling in 2026-27.