Nico Paz’s Journey from Madrid to Como: A Midfield Maestro in the Making 

The apple doesn’t always fall far from the tree, and that’s certainly been the case with Nico Paz. The son of 14-capped Argentina center-back Pablo Paz, who represented the Albiceleste in the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Nico was born in Tenerife, Spain, on September 8, 2004. He decided from a young age to follow in his father’s footsteps, beginning in Tenerife’s academy before heading to La Fábrica in 2016.

It was here at Real Madrid where Paz started to take matters into his own hands and rise up the ranks, with the youngster being promoted to Real Madrid Castilla in 2022/23 before making his first-team debut the following season in the Copa del Rey. All in all, he made eight appearances for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, mainly as a substitute, with his biggest highlight coming on November 29, 2023.

The Onerous Rise of Como 1907 – A Fitting Project for a Deserving Establishment

Paz replaced Brahim Díaz in the 65th minute with the score level, and he would need just 19 minutes to restore Real’s advantage, whilst Joselu put the finishing touches on Real’s 4-2 win against Napoli in extra time. Nine months after scoring his first-ever senior goal, Paz left Spain for the first time in his career and joined newly promoted Como. Madrid received a paltry sum of €6 million, but they nevertheless protected their asset’s long-term future.

According to Relevo journalist Matteo Moretto, Real can buy Paz back for €9 million in 2025, €10 million in 2026 and €11 million in 2027. In the increasingly unlikely scenario that they choose to let him leave Como and join another club, they would be entitled to 50% of Como’s transfer fee. The young attacking midfielder hasn’t taken long to emerge as a key figure under manager Cesc Fàbregas and set the standard for Como.

Paz is an elegant attacking midfielder who plays centrally and who has the ability to drop deep and carry the ball using his skill and pace. With his long passes and through balls, Paz can instantly switch his team from defense to attack. He’s an excellent passer and has the vision to find the right player with a near-perfect pass.

Nico is also skilled at taking all kinds of set pieces: corners, as well as short and long free kicks. He has good awareness in midfield and often escapes tight spaces with ease. His ability to finish from both long and short range makes him a goal threat anywhere near the box.

How Mike Maignan Became One of the Best Goalkeepers in Europe

Overall, his skill set makes him a modern-day number 8, and a team like Como could benefit greatly from a player like him. He would also have the freedom to express himself in Serie A, where the midfield isn’t always a high-intensity battleground. Como, who are playing top-fight football for the first time in 21 years, currently sit 14th in the table with 9 points from their first 8 matches.

Paz has started 5 out of a potential 7 matches and has already chipped in with various important contributions. When they traveled to Europa League champions Atalanta on September 24, Paz fired a potent shot from outside the box which took a big deflection to give Como a 2-1 advantage. In the 58th minute, he played a superb long ball to Fadera on the right wing, who advanced towards the box and finished with composure to give Como a two-goal cushion in a 3-2 victory.

He followed that up with another strong performance vs. Hellas Verona, setting up Serg Roberto with a golden opportunity, only for the ex Barcelona man to fluff his lines, whilst he also hit the post early in the second half. Darko Lazović equalized from the penalty spot, but Paz would conjure up his magic by delivering a perfect pass in behind the defense, which Patrick Cutrone duly converted into the right corner to give them a 2-1 lead, whilst Andrea Belotti would double their lead on the cusp of injury time en route to a 3-2 victory.

This prompted the attention of Lionel Scaloni, who gave him the opportunity to represent the Argentina national team. After riding the bench in their 1-1 stalemate in Venezuela, Paz replaced Lautaro Martínez in the 73rd minute and needed just 13 minutes to set up Lionel Messi’s third and final goal in a 6-0 shellacking of Bolivia in World Cup qualifying. In doing so, Paz followed in the footsteps of Alejandro Garnacho and became the latest player who, despite being born and raised in Spain, elected to play for the Albiceleste ahead of La Roja.

He returned brimming with confidence and delivered a scintillating performance against fellow promoted side Parma, who took an early lead thanks to Ange-Yoan Bonny’s audacious backheel flick. Como would respond just before the break, with Botond Balogh failing to deal with a through ball from Alieu Fadera, and Paz was quick to pounce and fire home with a low, driven shot. With 33 out of 40 passes completed, 9 passes into the final third, and 5 recoveries, Paz was FotMob’s highest-rated player (7.7) of the 1-1 draw after Adrián Bernabé (8.2).

Adrián Bernabé: The La Masia Talent Finding a New Lease on Life at Parma

Paz is Como’s highest-rated player (7.48) of the season thus far, boasting the joint-most assists (two) alongside Fadera, the second-most xG (1.9) after Cutrone (2.7), as well as the joint-most shots on target per 90 (1.4) alongside Cutrone. Paz is racking up 3.7 shots per 90, well ahead of second-placed Belotti and Cutrone (3.0), but in stark contrast to the veterans, Paz is converting just 4.8% of his shots.

The Argentina international has created five big chances thus far, three ahead of second-placed Alberto Moreno, whilst only Roberto (14) has created more chances than him (13), and he also has the most expected assists (1.2) and expected goal contributions per 90 (0.54) in Como’s squad. No player is completing more successful dribbles per 90 than Paz (2.1), whilst only Cutrone (1.0) and Lucas Da Cunha (1.3) are winning possession more times in the final third per 90 than Paz (0.9).

After honing his skills at La Fábrica, Nico Paz is now making a name for himself in Italy’s top-flight and getting his first real taste of senior football whilst learning from one of the greatest midfielders of the past generation in Cesc Fàbregas, and at 20 years of age, it seems that the sky is the limit. If the Argentine can keep up his stellar form and help Como avoid the drop in their return to Serie A, it may only be a matter of time before Paz follows in the footsteps of Dani Carvajal and Casemiro and becomes the latest player to return to Real Madrid after impressing abroad.

By: @TSpec1al

Featured Image: @GabFoligno / NurPhoto