Q: After losing 2-1 to Spirit and missing out on continuing at the Esports Club World Cup, facing such a disappointing defeat on your club's home turf, how do you view this series? The first two maps were close, but on the third map, you seemed to have completely disappeared.
flameZ: I think on the CT side of Anubis, we got off to a bit of a slow start. Some things we knew how to do and practiced well in training were executed too late in the actual match. Nuke was close—we actually threw away a bunch of rounds—but once you win the map, you tend to put those issues on the back burner for a while.
On Mirage, I don't feel like we completely disappeared. I think we did play well, we tried our best and got into some good positions, and some calls even got us into favorable spots. For example, there were rounds where they had four players holding B, we took A site but still lost the round—of course, that's where we went wrong.
I think sometimes we must respect individual skill. Today donk on Mirage was... he dominated the match. When a rifler at this level personally takes charge of the game, regardless of where we go, he secures two or three first kills, making it very difficult to win the match, especially with an exceptionally skilled sniper controlling the other side.
Sometimes in CS, you just have to respect that. We've won matches multiple times in the past thanks to individual performances from players like ropz and ZywOo. Today, it was donk's turn to explode and completely crush us.
Q: Before this series, you had a 6-game winning streak against Spirit, with your last loss dating back to October 2024. Does this perhaps make the loss even more disappointing? After all, you seemed to have a consistent upper hand against Spirit over time, and it's a team you often face in the playoffs.
flameZ: Yes, I think the loss in Paris was especially disappointing. You want to play well for the club and also for the players from France on the team. It's certainly disappointing, mainly for the fans because we wanted to go further and felt we had a good chance against an opponent we've faced many times.
But this is CS. Sometimes you can't handle the pressure, sometimes you don't play well, and sometimes your opponent just plays exceptionally well. We just have to accept that.
Of course, we were quite confident before the match, and we knew both teams had been struggling recently. There's a lot of disappointment and negativity right now. I want to review the game and understand why we lost on Anubis and why some rounds were so close.
I feel our matches against Spirit are always very close. Usually, we manage to have a slight edge in the final rounds or pull off comebacks, which is how we win the series. This time, it felt worse because we couldn't do that. However, we’ve also won many matches that could have gone their way.
Q：Next, you will shift to the BLAST Porto station, where jL will appear as a substitute. Do you think this could bring positive effects? After all, it's a new player and fresh energy. Or is the timing not ideal because you can't train and solve problems together with mezii?
flameZ: I think both perspectives are valid. It's a shame that we can't resolve issues with mezii, and I feel he has improved a lot in this tournament. He's in great form right now, but he has to take a break, which is unfortunate for him. However, we completely understand the decision he and Fiona have made, as opportunities to welcome a new family member don't come often.
On the other hand, jL brings a lot of good vibes and positive energy, which I find very uplifting. Our five players and coach XTQZZZ dove so deep into the strategy book that sometimes we forgot to remind ourselves of some of the most basic things. Wow!
When with jL, we can't delve into the entire tactical manual nor prepare 16 sets of tactics for each map. What we can truly do well is put ourselves in a position to re-memorize