Can Team Vitality Compete For Worlds After Roster Revamp?
Published: Jun 3, 2021
Team Vitality made the news lastweek for revamping their entire roster just before the Summer Split. After an ongoing saga of drama and unrest at Fnatic, Team Vitality wasted no time in swooping up a disgruntled Selfmade from their clutches. Adding to that coupe, Vitality put pen to paper on outspoken midlaner Adam “LIDER” Ilyasov. The Norwegian international had a brief stint in the LEC two years ago as a member of Misfits Gaming, but this time he gets to reinvent himself alongside solid playmakers in Selfmade and Crownshot. Finally, Vitality took a page from the LEC starter pack and signed another French top laner Enzo “SLT” Gonzalez (also from mousesports) to pair alongside their new Mid.
One man’s trash is another man’s jungler
Team Vitality easily won the award for most proactive team in the offseason this Summer as they were able to completely revamp their squad in less than a week. Shortly after MSI, rumblings started to surface that the situation in Fnatic read unhappy for multiple parties. With that, the departure of Selfmade made things that much easier for Vitality. They were hopeful to pair him alongside his former teammate Crownshot — as they briefly played together in 2018 as members of MAD Lions, and more frequently the following year as members of SK Gaming.
This little bit of continued chemistry may not seem like much at first, but there is a method to the madness for Team Vitality. After starting their season off lukewarm and with a budget roster, they have made the changes necessary to not only compete with the rest of the LEC, but also deliver a roster that is worth watching for common European fans. LIDER has developed a cult-like following for die-hard LEC fans as he has remained on the outside looking in for almost two years now.
Having his teammate join alongside him from the EU Master’s scene will also help him develop as he is not the sole rookie on this team. Keeping Labrov on as Support was also a smart decision on the side of management. For the entirety of Spring, Labrov was the only bright light on Vitality despite his team looking lackluster everywhere else. The vote of confidence that Crownshot has given him cannot be understated as winning from bot lane will most likely be Vitality’s best strategy this coming split.
Coach Tasz to the rescue
To complement these additions, Team Vitality also went to great lengths to make sure their management were as equipped as their playing staff to field a successful season. Vitality added new Head Coach Mateusz “Tasz” Borkowski to the mix in order to get a new look creatively on the rift.
With the number of strong personalities on this team now (since the arrival of Selfmade) it’ll be interesting to see how this new look roster gels together. There is no shortage of talent on this Team Vitality lineup, but cohesion as a unit will be hard to come by considering they are half a season behind compared to everyone else in the LEC. Time will tell if Selfmade can take this team into new heights as they hope to compete once again for playoff positions, or will this be another uneventful footnote for their storied franchise?
