Joe Cole, a former Chelsea player, bowed at the feet of Nico Paz, the young star of Italy's Como, and compared him to a Barcelona star.

Nico Paz moved to Italy's Como in mid-2024 to gain experience in the first category of a European league, as he did not have that continuity at Real Madrid.

Real Madrid retained the possibility of buying him back in the future, and, meanwhile, the attacking midfielder dazzles friends and foes alike in Serie A, to the point of being praised by an English football great for his skill on the pitch.

The swiftness of his footwork, his ability to stop and accelerate to shake off an opponent in one of the Italian side's many matches, earned praise from Joe Cole, the 44-year-old former English footballer who played for Chelsea and Liverpool, among other teams, and now works within the Blues board.

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"Nico Paz, please come and save me. I thought Pedri was the best at turning until I saw Nico Paz," Cole stated in comments published by Sky Sports journalist James John.

The comparison with the 23-year-old Barcelona star pits two talents with strong connections to Spain against each other, as one is a Blaugrana player and the other is a footballer who could return to Real Madrid, the two most popular teams in that country.

Cole valued his ability to pivot on his ankle and change the direction of play, along with his good changes of direction: "The turn he does is illegal."

The head-to-head between Paz and Pedri is favorable to the 21-year-old, who was born in Spain and chose to represent the Argentine national team. His 12 goal contributions, split into 6 goals and 6 assists in 17 matches, are above Pedri's 2 goals and 6 assists in 19 matches. Even with fewer games played than the Spaniard in the same position on the pitch.

The truth is that Nico Paz also holds greater prominence in the squad led by Cesc Fabregas since mid-2024. It all boils down to one small fact: Como has scored 22 goals in the current Serie A season, and the star has participated in over 50% of the team's goals in the championship, either as a scorer or an assister.

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