Bubzkji officially swaps JUGi in Astralis roster

Astralis has announced acquiring of Lukas "Bubzkji" Andersen from MAD Lions, with whom they've signed a contract for two years. The 22-year-old Dane replaced Jacob "JUGi" Hansen. The updated squad of Astralis will gather on Monday for the boot camp and will start preparing for the resumption of the season.

In his first interview the newcomer talked about the challenges he and the team are facing. He doesn't pay much attention to the number of players in the squad and he is sure that the extended roaster will help to achieve success.

- When I heard about Astralis’ interest, I already made up my mind: I want to be a part of this team and this organization and this is where I want to play! I had other options, but after talking to “zonic” and Kasper about the role I will have, the ambitions of the team, and how they work I am convinced I can contribute to the team and I can become a better player.

- Astralis leaves nothing to chance and I love their approach to the game. I know people will ask about the roster size, but for me it’s simple. Astralis has introduced a lot of new ideas to the way the game is played and it is done with one purpose: To become better as individuals and as a team - and to win. Introducing new ways to prepare and to improve is how they have managed to stay on top for years and I am so ready to be a part of this and to work my butt off to help the team!

 Astralis Group Sports Director Kasper Hvidt thanked JUGi for the cooperation, noting that the main reason for the break-up was the inability to adapt it to new roles. At the same time, Hvidt spoke positively about the newcomer, who should help the team to finish the year successfully.

- First of all, I want to thank “JUGi” for stepping in and taking on a huge task when we approached him. He is a top professional and under the right conditions, he is an extremely skilled player. He has not had the chance to play his favorite position, though, and when looking ahead things would not change in any near future and we believe it is the best solution for all to make the change now. We can only give “JUGi” our best recommendations as we still believe he can again become a high impact player on the right team.

- Over the summer we have taken our time to see how things developed with the players on leave and have adjusted our strategy accordingly. We have a very important fall season coming up and we want to stand as strong as possible in the upcoming tournaments and ultimately to defend our Major title

- We have looked for a skilled, hungry profile that could step right in and take his natural role on the team. Lucas “Bubzkji” Andersen fulfills all these criteria and I am glad we have managed to secure his signature on a 2-year contract. As always it will take time to get used to Astralis’ playbook, but after talking with him, the coach, and the team, I have no doubt Lucas will be able to contribute from day one.

- We are very humble about the situation and we have a lot of work ahead of us. We’ll see ups and downs in games and tournaments, but we’ve been here before and the team and the organization are hungry and eager to do everything to get back to where we belong.

JUGi expressed regret about his departure, but at the same time he is optimistic about the future. The sniper is sure that under the right conditions he is able to strengthen any team.

- Of course, I am disappointed, but I also respect the decision and I am glad I had the chance to play for Astralis. They are great teammates with an organization around them who does everything to make the players feel good. With the outlook to play a different role than where I feel most comfortable, though, it is better for me to move on.

- I am convinced I could have done more here and I am confident I can contribute to any team. The stay here has only confirmed to me, this is what I want to do and I look forward to playing for another team. I want to thank Kasper and everybody in the office for my time here. 

At the moment the Danes are in third place in the European RMR rankings, second only to Vitality and G2. The closest tournament for them will be ESL One Cologne 2020, starting on August 18.