Although CS may be in a meta where international teams are the norm, that hasn’t stopped fans from longing to return to the days when national teams reigned supreme. In a far simpler time, back then, fans from nations would have one team to rally around, much like Turkey and Germany still have today with Eternal Fire and BIG.

One of the loudest nations crying out for a national team to get behind at international LANs is Sweden, who in recent years have seen both NIP and fnatic turn their back on their national roots in favour of middling international teams.

The two organisations were dominant in the early years of CS:GO thanks to their Swedish rosters, winning three out of the first six Majors and having at least one team in the final each time. However, as talent began to dry up and their stars began to age, Sweden lost its two premier teams, and it’s about time they had something to shout about again.

With NIP currently undergoing a rebuild and continuing their international venture, the duty is seemingly on fnatic to bring pride back to Sweden, and given how their own international venture is going, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for them to do so.

Talent is beginning to pool in one of Counter-Strike’s most historic nations, so what is the best team they could build?

When opportunities arise

The main reason we say fnatic should be the team to pick up a Swedish roster isn’t actually to do with fnatic at all, instead, it’s everything to do with NIP. 

Well, it has a little to do with fnatic, they have precisely zero firepower in their current team, it’s hopeless.

A few years ago, before NIP made their now iconic and ultimately failed Nicolai “device” Reedtz signing, Tim “nawwk” Jonasson held the spot of AWPer on their team. Unfairly benched due to the arrival of device, that act brought about the term ‘getting nawwked’ and the rest, as they say, is history.

Once you read this interview with nawwk from BLAST.tv at the BLAST.tv Paris Major, it’s clear that the situation had a lasting effect on the Swede. He likened eliminating them from the event to ‘destiny’, and if that doesn’t make it obvious enough for you, there’s no hope that he will ever make a return to the Swedish organisation.

This is why fnatic now have a golden opportunity to make a Swedish superteam: you can’t have a Swedish superteam without nawwk, and given the recent news out of Apeks, nawwk is now available to purchase.

nawwk is by far the best AWPer in Sweden, and perhaps the only AWPer within the country who is truly capable of playing in tier one. Love “phzy” Smidebrant dominated in Asia, but that’s Asia, there’s no telling if he could recapture even 50% of that level in Europe. 

As for Jack “Jackinho” Strom Mattson, his 5.9 rated performances are likely what is preventing Metizport from taking the next step to becoming a truly tier one team.

But what about his Metizport teammates?

The young blood

When we said talent is beginning to pool in Sweden, we mainly meant in the form of the current Metizport roster. Well, minus Jackinho of course. 

There are also players like Joel “joel” Holmlund and Arvid “avid” Aberg, but those two names are even less experienced in tier one than the Metizport roster, and they won’t have the built-up chemistry that the Metizport boys could provide either.

So for those of you who don’t watch tier two CS or BLAST Premier Showdowns, allow us to give you a rundown of the Metizport team.

Starting off with Linus “nilo” Bergman, the young Swede is one of the hottest prospects in Counter-Strike today. Constantly linked with big moves to tier one teams, he is the main fragging force on Metizport and has a 6.7 rating to back it up. 

He also hit this crazy 1v5 against Preasy, which tells you everything you need to know about his potential in the game. 

Next up is Erik “ztr” Gustafsson, the former Young Ninjas player who has grown into a competent IGL since making the jump to Metizport. ztr isn’t a fragging IGL, but he is an IGL that has quickly managed to take Metizport up the rankings and pick up some impressive wins against teams that Metizport were considered underdogs against at the time. No longer considered underdogs in many of their matches, a large part of that is down to the guidance of ztr and the pure star power of nilo. 

The third and final Metizport member we think is perfect for a Swedish superteam is Adam “Adamb” Angstrom, the competent second star behind nilo. With a 6.2 rating, it’s clear that he is a way off nilo, but that’s okay because the rating is still strong and would be offset by the addition of nawwk into the team.

At this point, it’s probably worth saying why this team doesn’t include the likes of Fredrik “REZ” Sterner, Isak “isak” Fahlen, or Ludwig “Brollan” Brolin. 

In truth, a real Swedish superteam should probably include two, or possibly even all three of these names, but we just don’t think it’s realistic. REZ is NIP’s franchise player, and Brollan is one of the best teams in the world now he is on MOUZ. isak also looks to be joining NIP if you believe harumi, so he’s out too. 

Besides, these Metizport players are the future, and fnatic already have the right man to help guide them into tier one on their team.

The fifth element

A week ago we may have told you that fnatic should look to sign four players from Metizport and have included Tim “susp” Angstrom on this team, but given his recent benching, that no longer seems to be the best move.

It’s a benching that seems a little unfair given his respectable 5.9 rating in difficult spots, this tweet from Adamb suggests that those within the team think it was the right move going forward, and therefore it is one we shouldn’t question.

So, who should the fifth player be? 

Well, as we said already, fnatic has the perfect man for the job: Freddy “KRIMZ” Johansson.

KRIMZ is one of the most experienced players in Counter-Strike and has won everything during his time with fnatic. Despite his age, he is still a competent player too, averaging a 6.0 rating. 

The main benefit of having KRIMZ is his experience. Although nawwk will be able to provide some too, KRIMZ’s experience is unmatched in Sweden and that experience will be key to helping the Metizport trio successfully make the jump to tier one. 

Not quite a superteam

We’ve already said we don’t think this team is technically a superteam, at least not yet, anyway. However, what we will say is that this is a team with an insane amount of potential, and given how Metizport have already climbed the rankings without having a star AWPer on the team, nawwk could truly make them a threat on the international stage.

Given how fnatic’s latest attempt to build a successful roster has gone, we believe that this is the perfect opportunity for them to climb up the rankings. Perhaps even more importantly, it is also the perfect opportunity for them to return to their roots in Counter-Strike.