Team Heretics Neilzinho and Boo talk about their unbeaten run "We know we're not the team we expect us to be"

With VCT EMEA Stage 2 in its final week of the group stage, Team Heretics has solidified their spot in the playoffs. Not only that, but they have also gone unbeaten in Stage 2, with a staggering 5-0 record.

In an exclusive post-match interview following Team Heretics' victory over KOI, head coach Neil "neilzinho" Finlay and in-game leader Ričardas "Boo" Lukaševičius shared their candid reflections on the team's performance in Stage 2.

Despite a flawless 5-0 record in the group stage and a direct advance to the semifinals, both Neilzinho and Boo expressed dissatisfaction with their current form. They emphasized the team's commitment to continuous improvement and highlighted the challenges they faced, offering a rare glimpse into the mindset of a top-tier Valorant team striving for excellence.

[Interviewer] Would you guys like to share any thoughts on the game today?

[Neilzinho] I think it was a good game. We've not been playing very well the last couple of games I'd say. The last three games we've been pretty poor, to be honest. So it's something we're actively trying to fix. We know what the areas we need to focus on are.

I think right now we're not the team that I expect us to be and we're not the team that Boo expects us to be. We need to fix it for playoffs because, you know, Champions is the goal and we need to kind of pick it up a lot faster than what we have been.

But like I've said in pretty much every game so far, I'm just glad that we're winning the games even though we're playing pretty poorly, so I'm happy in that aspect.

[Interviewer] You say that you've not been playing up to the mark that you guys expect from yourselves, but after that final at Shanghai you guys have been undefeated in Stage 2. Do you have any comments on that?

[Neilzinho] I think even though we're unbeaten it's just because we have good fundamentals and they've carried us through quite far away. So it's the games that we're losing maps on that's what's frustrating because I want to 2-0 the teams like every time because we know we can 2-0 them.

So if we played our best and we still lost like against Gen.G, for example, we were playing pretty good as a team but we just lost to a better team, you know, so we learn from it.

But in the games that we've dropped maps on, sure like we might be undefeated but in a lot of those maps we've made really poor errors, we've let our standards slip and we don't learn anything because of it, so me and Boo and Weber, we expect our standards to not drop.

Because if you just run around and get kills and win games, sure that's kind of what's happened in the last three matches. But we want to be playing at our best all the time so that even if we do lose a map it's because we've lost a better team. But right now we're losing to ourselves when we lose and that's not how we want it.

[Interviewer] After Masters Shanghai, did you think you guys had any sort of pressure or any sort of mental stress that after doing so well in Shanghai, you had to perform in Stage 2?

[Boo] Yeah, that's how people think. The way we looked at it is like obviously going to Masters is insane and we had a good result. But looking at Stage 2 it's a disadvantage because everybody watches us play and at the same time we don't have time to prepare. So before Stage 2 started, we knew it's not going to be easy.

It was easier than we expected against NA'VI and FUT. But we were prepared to lose if that's what happened. We knew that [the] reality is we [were] underprepared compared to other teams and we are maybe a little more tired and stuff.

So we just focus on the game, that's what we do all the time. We focus on the game and we focus on playing well and if the result is a win, that's nice. If a result is a loss when you play well then you just respect it. You lost to a better team. You can't do more.

I know there was pressure from a public point of view but for us we tried our best to watch the situation in a realistic way.

As Team Heretics prepares for the playoffs with an unbeaten streak in Stage 2, Neilzinho and Boo remain grounded and focused on improvement. Their candid insights reflect a team not resting on its laurels but striving for peak performance.

In the second part of this interview, they delve into their international experience, discuss recent roster changes, and share their expectations for the upcoming playoffs and Champions.

You can watch the full interview below.

Stay tuned to Strafe Esports for more from the dynamic duo steering Team Heretics towards greatness.

Also subscribe to the Strafe YouTube channel for more exclusive interviews.

Featured Image Source: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games

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