Guild Eagles coach Jonatan Devilwalk Lundberg sat down with bo3.gg before the team started its way at the last CCT Online Finals #5. Among the things the first CS:GO Major winner talked about the progress his team has made so far in 2023, the switch to CS2, signing with Guild, and many more.
The Balkan team has been going through a lot throughout the 2023. From seeking the organization's support to a challenging period of CS2 adjustment, the Eagles struggled to make a long-awaited breakout. Despite all that, the players and coach strongly believe in their approach to the game.
After losing, the mood in a team is always low, but over the years, did you figure out how to make players deal with it properly?
Yeah, of course. You always want to win, and when things don't go your way 100%, you get slightly depressed after a game. Everyone here is professional. They know how to take a loss, how to take a win. It's okay to dwell on dark thoughts; everyone deals with things differently, and that's fine. After a while, you talk about it, see what went wrong, and go from there.
It's not the first time we'll lose, and it won't be the last time either. Everyone who plays professionally understands that. As for how I help them, it all depends on how the players react, and I take it from there. We can't beat ourselves up and are ready to go again.
Speaking generally about your team and CCT, how does the effect of constant participation in these online events help your team? It feels like it's sort of a trampoline for tier-2 teams.
I think it's great. It's good to have a path, and as the CS community widens and gets bigger, we get these ladder steps to the pro circuit and the very top. It's great that we always have games, and at this point, you almost have to decide to decline tournaments which wasn't always the case in the past. It's a very healthy state for the CS scene to be in.
It's been roughly a year since you joined the team; how has the team changed from when you joined to now?
When I first started they were really exhausted from their season, they were very burned out and the fact they had no org contributed to it. They didn't have that much management behind them which meant they had to do it all on their own. That was the first worry for me, trying to alleviate some of that stress and pressure and being able to grow from there.
They're high-energy people whether they lose or win, and it takes a great deal for them to play officials because of that high-energy state. We've been trying to ensure we're calmer in some situations but can still bring the fire. That's something I think will take effect more so now that we've joined Guild, we'll be able to focus more on the game itself and not everything surrounding the team.
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It may look like Bad News Eagles haven't made much progress from the outside. The year started well with second place in CCT and top 12 in Paris, which is good but not pure success. What would you say to that and progress?
You have to think about who we played. We play G2, Apeks, and FaZe, all really tough opponents. But I understand your question. After the Summer break, we kicked off very slowly, and obviously, we've been in the process of finding an organization and negotiating. While this isn't an excuse, it does take some energy from you, which may be a factor to consider. Otherwise, we have had rocky results since the Summer break, and that's something we're trying to figure out.
The last two or three weeks it's been going better, practice has been more efficient, and we've changed a lot in terms of our schedule and how we approach things. I think every person is different in how they learn, and sometimes it can take some time to figure out what the best way to get the knowledge to the players is, especially when they're an entire Albanian team. They speak Albanian on the server, and I'm trying to listen in. I'm not fluent in Albanian yet, but hopefully, that will improve over time. We're on an upswing, even if the result today wasn't what we wanted.
You said you switched up some things along the way. Is there any more you can share in terms of that?
It wasn't after Summer we kinda continued our approach from the first half of the year in the first steps after the break, but we quite quickly realized it wasn't really working, and we weren't progressing as quickly as we wanted to. It's been a weird year for teams in that regard; there was a period when we were playing CS:GO when we didn't know when to switch to CS2, and that both gives motivation and takes it away when you know there's a new game coming, but you don't know the dates.
I think that was a factor in our slow start, but now, in practice, we've tried to make sure it's more compact and do more reps on the server instead of more talking and theory. We're trying to figure out different ways people learn. Some people learn through doing, others through hearing, and others through figuring it out in their own way. Some even need visual representation in some sense. I think we've figured out how to do that in the last couple of weeks, and that's going to be helping us in the future.
Anyway, as we were talking about earlier on, your results have been at the same level all year; how do the players not become disheartened by this?
First, I always say that if a team changes a coach, you're joining a sinking ship, at least a little bit, anyway. There will be a lot of internal issues that need to be fixed and spoken about and, in some way, solved. This is something we've worked on a lot. I know they are disappointed if we lose, but that's not a unique problem for our team. Everyone has that problem. At the same time, I know that if you want to become good, you have to struggle. Sometimes it won't look perfect, but eventually, when you push through that kind of struggle, and you can look at any team, they will have struggles, Astralis, Vitality, whoever you want, they will have these periods where things aren't clicking. Still, when you get through it and stick by each other and your principles, you will become five or six times better after a certain amount of time. Learning new ways to play, dealing with certain situations, and getting new responsibilities for the players take time to gel into the working machinery. Results might not always suggest it, but we're on the right path. I fully believe in the guys and how we handle things right now.
Back in the day, you experienced the transition to CS:GO as a player, and now you're experiencing the transition to CS2 as a coach. Is there something you're doing to make that transition smoother for your team?
I think we were very optimistic going into CS2, but the transition has been more challenging than expected. Some things take some time because you have to delete your knowledge of how you play the game because small details change a lot. Rushing and glock trains on pistols are now so good compared to CS:GO where you could hold defensive angles better than you can now. You have a peeker's advantage and taking initiative which is better than in CS:GO.
Let's speak about Guild then; how did the decision come about? Why did you sign with Guild?
Guild has good staff, good office space, and basically, I think the people behind the organization make us feel like a family. It's been a process ever since the Summer break. We've been negotiating with them and finally, we locked contracts a few weeks ago, so for us, we've just been hyped about representing them. They're helping us with all kinds of things that tier-one orgs have, sports psychologists, backroom staff, and managers, making sure that we have a comfortable time. For that to take effect will take a couple of weeks to get it all in order, but for me, it will be a lot of my back that will let me focus on coaching instead of management.
James Banks helps you with management, right?
Yeah, he's been facilitating a lot in terms of helping us find Guild and talking to them while playing, but a lot of the day-to-day stuff is still in my hands.
Guild is known for being owned by David Beckham. Have you met him yet?
No, not yet.
What? It's the whole reason for signing with them!
[laughs] Hopefully, we can meet him soon, it would be cool.
Is it in your contracts like "once a quarter, we have a meeting with Beckham"?
I should rip up the contract and add it in a renegotiation.
Many teams make roster shuffles, but that doesn't feel like it's possible for your team because the team's core is five players. Do you think they are so resilient and stick by each other because everyone realizes there is no other option, especially considering the language barrier?
No, not at all. I think they have a strong bond with each other, but there are definitely players coming up from Kosovo and Albania who are proving themselves. For us though, it's not an option, that's not how I want to work. I've rarely made changes in my team in the past and there's a reason for that, I truly believe in sticking together and improving as a unit, and making sure that we're on the right path together. Roster changes aren't something we think about at all. I also don't think that's the reason they have a strong bond, I think their personalities and the experiences they've had together have built that. Fear of getting kicked and fear of something else coming in can push you to another level, but I'd rather go other ways than that. I think we're in this boat together and we will leave it together.
As a coach, how do you approach the necessity of changes to rosters? When is the point you realize you need to switch something up?
It can be performance-based, but you have to review that in terms of responsibility. Some people have it easy with easy roles that are to frag, and the community can see this and compare things like Vertigo Mid to Vertigo B, and of course, the Mid player will have more frags because B is the hardest spot on the map. That's just a fact. It's like playing Connector on Mirage to B Apps, you're going to have way more opportunities. People are very looking with one eye at this. They look at stats and don't add context to it. Stats without context mean nothing, so you have to look at all these things as well as organization and communication. It's easy to play CS if you just shut up and aim comparatively to an IGL who organizers calls and plays. This goes into the thought process, but so do personal relationships and how well they work together as people, as well as if they are coachable and a lot of factors.
Do you have any short-term goals leading up to the Major? Are there any results you want before then?
I'm not sure we have things like that in mind. For us, the RMR and ensuring we qualify for the Major with Guild is essential. We'll take it daily to ensure we're ready for that and keep playing online matches to get us to where we need to be. We see it as a period where we can develop, catch up to teams making changes, and be ready for the Major.
Do you have requirements or expectations from the org?
Everyone has expectations and goals, but we'll take it day by day and go from there.
Do you think Zonic's salary and opportunities with the Falcons set a precedent for organizations and coaches in CS2? Do you think teams are looking into it more right now?
I think so. He's a great ambassador for the coach role and had great success; I have a lot of respect for him. If he gets a fat salary, which I don't doubt, but if he does, then he deserves it. He's done a lot for the game as a whole. I remember watching him when he played for mTw in 1.6, and he was one of the best players in the world. He was a complete player. I have a lot of respect for him as a player and a coach. He deserves all the praise he gets.
Let's discuss your career: you successfully transitioned to CS:GO and won the Major. Would you have any advice for new players about how to do the same?
You have to put hours in at the beginning. It's such a weird thing because you have to enjoy what you're doing. You must enjoy yourself and pace your actions, which is a weird balance. But, for young players, enjoy yourselves and take five to ten minutes daily to learn smokes, think about situations for 100 days, and be honest with yourself. Don't bullshit and say that an enemy was lucky with a headshot. Ask if you put yourself in a position where the enemy could do that, or did you play it correctly? Just doing that, you don't have to put hours and hours in with theory every day, but making sure you learn while having fun is the best advice I can give.
Do you still think about great players who didn't manage to transition?
I remember a lot of Swedish players that used to play. What was the old SK lineup? face, Delpan, these kinds of players didn't really transition. Gux in fnatic, THREAT, and stuff, latter came back later. But there were a lot of Swedish players and IGLs who didn't really make the transition, and that's part of why NIP was so strong in the beginning because they had a massive amount of experience compared to the Swedish teams.
Are you still in contact with them?
Sometimes, it's back and forth, not weekly or monthly. If you see them, you pay your respects. I actually met one of them yesterday, cArn.
I guess that was nice.
Yeah, I'm good friends with Patrick and I have huge respect for him. It was nice to meet up.
What are your views on the Swedish scene nowadays?
We had a generational shift, you know, with many players that came up through 2012-2014, and it didn't go so well. But I actually do believe in the new generation that's coming up now. There are some really strong players. I think everyone has seen MaiL09. Also, in Alliance, there's Avid, I think he's really talented, and there are some other players here and there. So, I actually do have a lot of hope. Talent and players are increasing now in Sweden, so I'm optimistic for the next two or three years because many of these people will start breaking out and showing themselves on the international stage.
Do you think CS has lost a sense of national pride now there are so many international teams? How does it affect the interest and competitiveness? Is it something that will need to be fixed in the future?
My personal opinion is that even though there are a lot of international squads right now, that's mainly because it's easier to find the right fit of player you want rolewise. But, the negative part I see is that, if you remember, throughout history, all teams and nations have their own way of thinking and playing CS. Good examples include Fnatic and NIP, VP, or NAVI with their slow, methodical style.
Everyone plays almost the same style, and although that style might be of higher quality, I enjoyed CS more when we had regionally based styles. Finnish guys might be really explosive, Sweden is more lurky and defaulty, Poland was very aggressive, I liked that aspect where we got influences from very unique ways of playing. Comparatively, now I think that all teams play the same CS. Most teams have the same strategy today, and that's a natural progression, but I also miss the nationality-based thing.
In that regard you're lucky because you still work with a national team.
Exactly.
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