Team Liquid, known for its ambitions and high expectations for 2024, soon ran into unexpected difficulties and failed. This sharp decline has become one of the most high-profile disappointments in eSports in recent years. In an exclusive interview with HLTV, former Liquid coach Wilton “zews” Prado spoke about the problems that began to accumulate within the team, describing them as a “snowball effect.”
After seven months of unstable play, the team parted ways with several key players including Felipe “skullz” Medeiros, Casper “cadiaN” Møller and head coach Wilton “zews” Prado. In the new lineup, the team is trying to find its place under the leadership of Russel “Twistzz" Van Dulken, who has taken on the role of captain for the first time. Interestingly, Twistzzzz has never been a captain before, which adds intrigue to what is going on and makes one wonder about the future of the team.
The original plan was to assemble a lineup with oSee and Brehze, fully focused on players from North America. But the general manager of the team Jokasteve suggested an alternative variant - a lineup with cadiaN, Twistzz, YEKINDAR and NAF, where KSCERATO was to play instead of skullz. In the end the team settled on skullz, as KSCERATO decided to stay in FURIA.
The problems started at the end of January with a big fight within the team, after which disagreements in ideas and styles of play began to manifest themselves. Despite the common belief that the main reason for the failures was cadiaN's inability to adapt to the new style, zews emphasized that the problem was more systemic, related to the incompatibility of different elements of the team.
I've since seen it unfold. So it didn't happen overnight, it was a snowball effect, let's put it that way. Not that things completely changed, but we started to see a clash of ideas, styles of play and personalitiesZews noted
Zews noted that the choice of team composition was a collective decision, and while cadiaN was an important element, his leadership skills didn't fit Liquid's needs. Twistzz and YEKINDAR were instrumental in the decision-making process, and it was they who took responsibility for the tactical side of the game when it became clear that cadiaN would not be able to effectively manage the team.
This is the first time in his career that Twistzz is taking on the IGL role and it is an important step for his development as a player. Zews expressed confidence in Twistzz's knowledge and strategic abilities, but noted that he still has work to do on his leadership skills and ability to interact with the team on an emotional level.
The situation surrounding Liquid emphasizes the importance of choosing the right leader and working harmoniously as a team. Twistzzzz's transition into the role of captain and IGL could be a pivotal moment for his career and the team as a whole. It will be interesting to see how the new changes will affect Liquid's performance in future tournaments. Already tomorrow will be the first match in the updated lineup against Virtus.Pro.
Source: HLTV
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