This Danish captain once again qualified for the IEM Cologne playoffs. Despite being down 1-11, FaZe made a remarkable comeback, ultimately winning the deciding map with a total score of 16-13, defeating Liquid. In a post-match interview, karrigan shared his feelings about the comeback and how they achieved it.
“You have to be a part of FaZe to understand how we operate. We were very calm during the game. First of all, everyone was enjoying the game and having fun. The score reached 12-3, and I said, 'Oh my god, we lost the first gun round.' Our communication was very calm, and the opponents didn't put too much pressure on us, so we knew what to do. We played very well, with many beautiful kills, but somehow the score reached 12-12. That's when we played our best.
When we are pushed to the brink, we become even calmer. In the first two rounds on Inferno, we played very chaotically, but when we came to the defensive side of Mirage, everything went back on track. I was happy to see how everyone stayed focused and calm. There was no blaming or anger in the team; we just smiled because that's CS. Sometimes you can be down 1-11.”
Since the release of the new version of CS last year, FaZe has won three championships, but they haven't won any titles since lifting the trophy at IEM Chengdu. For IEM Cologne, karrigan decided to change his commanding style within the team, even if it might affect his personal performance.
“I think this gave us a bit of a honeymoon period of belief. Ultimately, the players had to accept the new way I wanted to play. I took control and emphasized, 'I want to do it this way, I want to play this way.' I wanted to micro-manage and give commands because it makes it harder for the opponents to read us. It was very exhausting, and I knew it would affect my performance, but the past three months have been terrible, so I thought, why not try something more aggressive?
We needed something convincing to ignite the spark of hope in the players. Now I see them playing better and more confidently. If you create something new, new tactics, everyone will think more and be more innovative. Ultimately, it comes down to firepower. We have gained confidence in the game. So far, my favorite part of this IEM Cologne journey is that we have four players with similar stats. Everyone's stats are very balanced, but no one has outstanding stats. However, when we come to the Cologne stage, someone in our team always stands out, adding extra fun to our game.”
karrigan's decision paid off, helping FaZe reach the IEM Cologne playoffs once again. This is the tenth Cologne event in CS history, and this Danish veteran has participated in all previous Cologne events.
“I sacrificed a lot of life for this, like time with friends, family, and my wife. Before IEM Cologne, I had my second wedding anniversary, but I gave up the anniversary and devoted myself to 12 hours of training every day. I told her that if I didn't give my all for my tenth IEM Cologne event, I couldn't forgive myself. We can find another day to spend together.
She completely understands me, and she knows how competitive I am. I have competed in Cologne 10 times and won one championship. I want to be a champion again. I love the competition. For me, it is an honor to be part of this journey that started 10 years ago and continues to this day, with crowds of people every time. What can I say? It's a fantastic scene. I am part of this incredible journey, and I can't wait to see its conclusion.”
FaZe will face the dark horse SAW in the IEM Cologne quarterfinals.
