Bosnian CSGO superstar Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kovač, the newest addition to the G2 Esports team was interviewed by Dexerto and answered questions about his complicated departure from FaZe Clan, his new role within G2, and how his new team will move forward.
NiKo is confident that he will not only reach his old levels of individual play but that he can do even better: “I believe that I can do even much better than I did 2 or 3 tears ago”. He explained how his recent experience as IGL has improved his tactical knowledge, saying it will help him in-game.
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"The goal is to bring the old NiKo back…"@G2NiKo is gunning for @ZywOo's #1 spot after leaving @FaZeClan.#BLASTPremier | w/ @GFuelEnergy pic.twitter.com/Y2bTuSupKl
— DEXERTO.COM (@Dexerto) November 4, 2020
The 23-year old had been acting as the In-Game Leader of FaZe clan on and off since the London FaceIT Major in late 2018. He took the reins from Finn ‘karrigan’ Andersen and oversaw an unstable period of FaZe Clan in which the team failed to perform up to expectations even after several roster changes.
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Being “free” from the IGL role means that NiKo will be able to focus more on his individual performance as he stated: “I’m just going to be sitting on the side and just do my thing”.
“…The goal is to bring that old NiKo back”.
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The new G2 player also believes that thanks to his experience in the past two years he will be able to help his new IGL Nemanja ‘nexa’ Isaković.
"We wanted to get ALEX, but the deal didn't go through…"@G2NiKo reveals the breaking point behind leaving @FaZeClan.#BLASTPremier | w/ @GFuelEnergy pic.twitter.com/GhABxXe7Kg
— DEXERTO.COM (@Dexerto) November 3, 2020
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Opening up about his departure from FaZe Clan, NiKo mentions the team’s struggles at the beginning of the new season in August, in particular at EASL One Cologne and ESL Pro League where he finished 9-12th and 13th-14th respectively. He states how the trash talk on social media and HLTV.org forums had a negative effect on him: “I just couldn’t take it anymore”.
More importantly, NiKo mentions the team’s inability to acquire the players they were targeting. Alex ‘ALEX’ McMeekin, previously the IGL for Vitality, was reportedly very close to joining FaZe but the deal quickly collapsed, with FaZe announcing the signing of Markus ‘Kjaerbye’ Kjaerbye shortly afterward.
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“…We wanted to get ALEX but that deal did not go through…”
These factors, combined with his desire to play alongside his cousin Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač prompted him to leave FaZe Clan.
"I just couldn't take it anymore…"@G2NiKo opens up on his switch to @G2Esports from @FaZeClan.#BLASTPremier | Presented by @GFuelEnergy pic.twitter.com/TASakebZHR
— DEXERTO.COM (@Dexerto) November 2, 2020
He follows up by saying his decision to leave FaZe for G2 had been made before the team had even started to play at IEM: New York at the beginning of October.
FaZe were the eventual winners of the tournament, after a clean sweep of OG in the final series of the tournament. G2, on the other hand, finished in last place alongside Heroic.
Immediately after FaZe’s victory at IEM New York, the mother of Marcelo ‘coldzera’ David asked NiKo to “rethink some decisions” – referencing his rumored move to G2.
NiKo himself stated he never reconsidered his position after letting the team know: “So the win at IEM NY didn’t really matter too much.
"I want to be the playmaker."@G2NiKo delves into his new role on @G2Esports.#BLAST Premier | w/ @GFuelEnergy. pic.twitter.com/nyXJa1yhyo
— DEXERTO.COM (@Dexerto) November 3, 2020
NiKo explicitly states that G2 currently has no intention of fielding a 6-man roster and that they will be looking to see which player out of François “AmaNEk” Delaunay or Audric “JaCkz” Jug better fits their system.
“…we want to have a set 5-man roster from the beginning of next year.”
G2 Esports have completed their campaign at Blast Premier: Fall Series, topping their group while playing with AmaNEk, who had a stellar tournament displaying significantly improved stats to his previous three months.
We have yet to see JaCkz compete in the new line-up.
After a truly stellar debut in G2 colors, NiKo and his French-Balkan teammates are getting ready to compete at IEM Beijing-Haidian 2020 Europe. Their first match against young and exciting NiP is almost certain to produce some great and entertaining Counter-Strike.
