NAVI CEO on s1mple's absence at BLAST: "We didn't think of it as something bad"

NAVI CEO Yevhen Zolotarov commented on the absence of Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev in the team's first matches at BLAST Premier Fall Groups 2022 in a video on the club's YouTube channel. The head emphasized that the squad playing without its main star is not something bad.

Zolotarov believes that the temporary absence of s1mple, who had already returned to the roster ahead of the final stage of the tournament, was a good opportunity for Daniil "headtr1ck" Valitov, a member of the club's academy team, to prove himself.

Well, it's interesting. We didn't think of it as something bad but rather a great chance for headtr1ck to prove himself. It's also interesting to see how the team does without s1mple for the first time. It's good we have our academy players and we don't need to think about where to find a replacement.

Together with headtr1ck, NAVI started their BLAST campaign with a defeat from Complexity, followed by victories over G2, Complexity and Liquid, which secured them first place in Group B and the best seed in the final part of the tournament.

On August 27, Natus Vincere will face G2, BIG or Vitality for a spot in BLAST Premier Fall Final 2022. In case of loss, the CIS squad will get another chance to make it to the event.

Origin: youtu.be