Blitz Explains What Changed in Team Liquid After zai and MATUMBAMAN’s Addition

In the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) Western Europe (WEU) 2021-22 Tour 1: Division 1, Team Liquid emerged as the best team finishing on top of the tables. It looks like the roster shuffle after The International (10), when it added Lasse Aukusti "MATUMBAMAN" Urpalainen and Ludwig "zai" Wåhlberg to its lineup has already started paying dividends. Team Liquid’s coach William "Blitz" Lee explained in a recent podcast how the addition of MATUMBAMAN and zai had improved the confidence of the team, an aspect that had been lacking in the previous iteration.

According to Blitz, both MATUMBAMAN and zai remain composed throughout games and don't let their emotions overwhelm them. This has had a positive impact on the other players and is enabling the team to have a greater degree of resolve.

Blitz sees MATUMBAMAN and zai's confidence as a key to Team Liquid's recent success

During the podcast with Dota 2 caster Austin "Cap" Walsh, Blitz mentioned that he had observed players from all the teams he had been with up to now, and they cared very much about scrim results as well as the effort put into them. But MATUMBAMAN has a different perspective on this. Despite Team Liquid losing a majority of its scrims before the DPC started, MATUMBAMAN said that he did not care about the results as long as the atmosphere was good.

This mentality seems to have worked out well for the team, as Liquid has turned into one of the top contenders in the Western European region.

The two new players exude both confidence and clarity in their play, which as per Blitz is the biggest difference between the previous and the current Team Liquid squad. He mentioned that while Aydin "iNSaNiA" Sarkohi is the captain, MATUMBAMAN has a significant voice within the team.

“Aydin is the captain for sure but Matu is a big voice and if he says - Hey guys! Listen. Practice isn’t going well but we are a good team, trust me, it hits a little bit differently. I mean, these guys have so much confidence, you have no idea. Zai and Matu. And I think that has probably been the biggest thing, whenever I go into a match, I feel like they know what they are doing at all times.”

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Blitz was quick to point out that Max "qojqva" Bröcker and Tommy "Taiga" Le, the team’s previous players with whom they spent years playing, also possessed such attributes. But, MATUMBAMAN and zai's track record and personalities accentuate these qualities.

“It’s not like Max and Tommy didn’t but it’s different because these guys have accomplished so much you know, and their confidence, because I would say that a problem with our team was like - collectively as five I think our confidence was not amazing whereas zai and Matu are so forceful about it, about how confident they are.”

Instead, the remaining three Team Liquid players, iNSaNiA, Michael "miCKe" Vu, and Samuel "Boxi" Svahn, lack the assertiveness and fortitude that zai and MATUMBAMAN infuse into the matches to make it easier for everyone on the team to play.

“But you know, our guys get nervous. MiCKe gets nervous, I can tell Aiden gets nervous from time to time. Same with Boxi, he gets titled whereas Matu and zai are cool customers like - we are gonna f***ing win this game. Relax. Everybody calm down. We are gonna win this game. And yeah, if you go to the games with that attitude, and our team is young and naïve and they believe them, then they always feel like we are going to come back in a game and so we play it out fully which is why a lot of our games look weird and people say - Ah, you made this great comeback - but it’s all part of the plan baby.”

In the past, Team Liquid has been known for going late and making great comebacks and this tradition has continued with MATUMBAMAN and zai. One of the best examples was game three against OG in Tour 1 of the DPC 2021-22, where the team came back from a significant deficit to win in 74 minutes. Blitz specifically praised both the new players' performances in this game.

Team Liquid ended the season with six series wins and just one loss to Nigma Galaxy. As the top seed, the team will face Taiga's OG in the first round of the WEU Regional Finals. Besides Team Liquid and OG, Tundra Esports and Team Tickles will also be in the race for the $100,000 USD prize pool and 380 DPC points in the Regional Finals.