Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2021

IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: What do you think of Ancient? IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: What do you think of Ancient?

IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: What do you think of Ancient?

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Grady Hooker
All the teams had a chance to play Ancient in an official match at this point of the tournament so it felt fitting to see what the overall opinion was from the playoff teams to the new map. What did they like? What did they hate? and what would they like to change about it?
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IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: Which teams surprised you? IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: Which teams surprised you?

IEM Cologne Play-Off Teams: Which teams surprised you?

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Interviews
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Grady Hooker
Before the playoffs we talked to all six teams featured; Astralis, NaVi, Gambit, VirtusPro, G2, and FaZe about which teams surprised them in this tournament. Either performed way better than they were expecting coming into it, or that underperformed and needed to pick up their game.
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Heroic: "We don't want anybody who's not wanting to kick ass" Heroic: "We don't want anybody who's not wanting to kick ass"

Heroic: "We don't want anybody who's not wanting to kick ass"

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Grady Hooker
Ahead of their clash with Team Spirit, we got to talk to cadiaN, TeSeS, refrezh, stavn from Heroic alongside their mental coach Troels Robl and physiotherapist Kasper Straube. We get all of the insights about how the performance team helps out the squad in preparing for their games.
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Astralis: "I was really aggressive before, but I think I've tuned down that a little bit" Astralis: "I was really aggressive before, but I think I've tuned down that a little bit"

Astralis: "I was really aggressive before, but I think I've tuned down that a little bit"

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Grady Hooker
In a brief session, Josh got to talk Bubzkji & Xyp9x from Astralis. They talked about the other Danish teams rising into the top echelon of CSGO teams, and how Bubzkji has adapted into the Astralis style after coming over from MAD Lions.
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NaVi: "I feel like all our players finally feel the power that we have" NaVi: "I feel like all our players finally feel the power that we have"

NaVi: "I feel like all our players finally feel the power that we have"

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Grady Hooker
We talk to s1mple & b1ad3 from Natus Vincere about the other CIS teams that have shown great skill in the online era, the conditions that they have to play in their hotel rooms, and the important of the momentum from their win in the RMR tournament.
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Virtus.Pro: "[Cologne] is the most important tournament even if it's not a major" Virtus.Pro: "[Cologne] is the most important tournament even if it's not a major"

Virtus.Pro: "[Cologne] is the most important tournament even if it's not a major"

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Grady Hooker
Coming off a tough tournament, we talked to YEKINDAR, Jame, and dastan from Virtus.Pro about how easy it is to reset mentally coming into IEM Cologne. We also get some insight into AVANGAR's 2019 run compared to their current run.
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Team Liquid: "It's really hard to easily replace the chemistry" Team Liquid: "It's really hard to easily replace the chemistry"

Team Liquid: "It's really hard to easily replace the chemistry"

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Grady Hooker
There have been some roster changes since Team Liquid was at it's peak and we talk to EliGE about the difference of the variations, we also get adreN's opinion on skipping the play-in stage, and round it out with a talk about the best NA rising talent.
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Gambit: "We need to create our meta because we're on the top" Gambit: "We need to create our meta because we're on the top"

Gambit: "We need to create our meta because we're on the top"

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Grady Hooker
We got a chance to talk to the top team in the world right now, Gambit. nafany gives us some insights on getting to the number one spot versus trying to stay there and then Hobbit chats to us about the differences between 2017 Gambit and this team.
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G2 Esports: "There hasn't been any issues ever since I joined" G2 Esports: "There hasn't been any issues ever since I joined"

G2 Esports: "There hasn't been any issues ever since I joined"

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Grady Hooker
Directly into the Group Stage is G2 Esports and we talk about whether that is a positive or a negative with NiKo, huNter-, and JaCkz. We also talk to the cousins about playing together after 6months and to JaCkz about his time on the bench.
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MIBR: "We have a potential to be the best Brazilian team" MIBR: "We have a potential to be the best Brazilian team"

MIBR: "We have a potential to be the best Brazilian team"

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Grady Hooker
We have seen some changes around MIBR and Josh and Grady delve into that with yel, exit, and Apoka to find out the biggest changes of exist joining, their feeling surrounding the RMR reset, and how they view the entire Brazilian scene.
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Team One: "We wanted to give a chance to a new Brazilian upcoming player" Team One: "We wanted to give a chance to a new Brazilian upcoming player"

Team One: "We wanted to give a chance to a new Brazilian upcoming player"

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Grady Hooker
People might be sleeping on Team One, but we got the chance to talk to malbsMd, pesadelo, and righi before they compete at IEM Cologne. We talked about the addition of xns, the difference of playing in Europe, and how they have found Ancient so far.
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Vitality: "It's always tough to be that low when you were that high" Vitality: "It's always tough to be that low when you were that high"

Vitality: "It's always tough to be that low when you were that high"

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Grady Hooker
We got the chance to talk to apeX and misutaaa from Team Vitality before they have to play at IEM Cologne. We got to ask about what they need to do to reclaim the number one spot, what they think of Double Poney, and discuss momentum of winning your first games.
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Team LDLC: "With Keoz and Maka I feel like we are more on the same page" Team LDLC: "With Keoz and Maka I feel like we are more on the same page"

Team LDLC: "With Keoz and Maka I feel like we are more on the same page"

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Grady Hooker
What is going through Team LDLC's head as they prepare for IEM Cologne? We chat to hAdji, Keoz, and SIXER about this lineup and their recent rosters changes, preparing for a LAN tournament, and compare the current lineup to ones from the past few years.
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FaZe: "I think it's one of the best iterations of FaZe" FaZe: "I think it's one of the best iterations of FaZe"

FaZe: "I think it's one of the best iterations of FaZe"

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Grady Hooker
FaZe Clan have seen a drop in the rankings lately and are looking to prove that their current line-up can stand with the titans of Counter-Strike right now. We talk to rain & karrigan about their aspirations, how this roster compares to previous ones, and what the rankings mean to them.
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mousesports: "We wanted to go with a younger lineup" mousesports: "We wanted to go with a younger lineup"

mousesports: "We wanted to go with a younger lineup"

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Grady Hooker
Grady and Josh get the chance to talk to ropz, Bymas, dexter, and mithR from mousesports ahead of their IEM Cologne adventure about bringing dexter in as the IGL, Bymas' expectations around a tier-one LAN, and what their goals are here at the tournament.
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Bad News Bears: "Every single team we're going to play thinks we're garbage" Bad News Bears: "Every single team we're going to play thinks we're garbage"

Bad News Bears: "Every single team we're going to play thinks we're garbage"

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Grady Hooker
Bad News Bears are the saviours of NACS and looking to make a big impact here at IEM Cologne. We talk to Shakezullah, ptr, and Jonji about being orgless, their aims with the team and recent roster movements, and the sweet sweet merch!
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FURIA: "I don't feel happy about our past performances overall" FURIA: "I don't feel happy about our past performances overall"

FURIA: "I don't feel happy about our past performances overall"

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Grady Hooker
What is honda's expectations for himself coming back into the roster? Are FURIA happy with their recent results in tournaments? What is arT's mentality when it comes to winning and losing? We chat to FURIA to get all of these answers and more.
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BIG: "You can't really fix your mistakes because you have tournament after tournament" BIG: "You can't really fix your mistakes because you have tournament after tournament"

BIG: "You can't really fix your mistakes because you have tournament after tournament"

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Grady Hooker
We sit down with tabseN, tiziaN, and k1to from BIG to talk about what they need to do as a team to get back to the number one spot, what it is like when they clash against their fellow Germans in Sprout, and the pressures of an insane tournament schedule.
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Renegades: "Just the experience alone is invaluable for team improvement" Renegades: "Just the experience alone is invaluable for team improvement"

Renegades: "Just the experience alone is invaluable for team improvement"

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Grady Hooker
With the new lineup this is Renegades' first time in getting to go up against the stronger European teams and they are not taking it lightly. We talk to malta and their coach KingFisher about who is coming up through the Australian scene, their recent rosters changes, and what competing in Europe again means to them.
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