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Fnatic Part Ways With Poizon And ALEX, Down To Two Players

Major roster moves on the horizon
by Tit Krajnik on May 21, 2022   

Fnatic announced the departure of  Alex "ALEX" McMeekin and Valentin "poizon" Vasilev from the active Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster. This leaves the Black & Orange with only two players on the active lineup as the team looks to rebuild.

Only Two Players Remain

Fnatic will continue without ALEX and poizon, who got moved to inactive status on Saturday, May 21. This leaves Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson and William "mezii" Merriman as the only remaining players on the active roster. The two will likely remain with the organization through the rebuilding process.
 


KRIMZ and mezii have also been the top performers for Fnatic in 2022, averaging 1.03 and 1.07 ratings, respectively. Of the two, KRIMZ is the longest-serving member of the organization, having joined Fnatic in April 2014 and has been a part of the team ever since – except for a short two-month stint with GODSENT in August-October 2016.

Mezii, on the other hand, joined Fnatic alongside ALEX in August 2021 as a part of a complete roster overhaul, which saw Fnatic step away from its identity of fielding an all-Swedish roster in favour of an international lineup.

The changes follow a streak of disappointing performances from Fnatic, who, most notably, failed to qualify for the 2022 PGL Major and have not won a single tournament title since November 2021.

A Turbulent Period

The now pending, major roster overhaul started in February when Fnatic parted ways with AWPer Owen "smooya" Butterfield and Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin, who left for Ninjas in Pyjamas in a blockbuster deal in March. Fnatic have since played with Valentin "poizon" Vasilev, who joined as the new AWPer on trial, and Fnatic academy player Peppe "Peppzor" Borak, who put on the jersey as a stand-in.
 


Despite having very little time with the new lineup, Fnatic qualified for the Regional Major Ranking event and impressed many with their ninth-12th place finish at ESL Pro League Season 15. But since then, success has been hard to come by.

Fnatic failed to qualify for the PGL Major Antwerp, finishing the European RMM A in 12th-14th place after losing against Heroic, SAW, and Eternal Fire. Their woes continued in the Intel Extreme Masters Dallas European Qualifiers, in which Fnatic finished in last place.

New Fnatic

It's unclear what direction Fnatic will take or who will the organization bring in as a replacement, but as it seems, the team is looking to make some major changes. As always, the Major is bound to shake up the CS:GO scene and put many players on the market, allowing Fnatic to explore their options and build a roster that can help Black & Orange re-emerge as one of the top esports CS:GO teams in the world.

We might have to wait for a bit longer before Fnatic lock in a new roster. But the team is in a race against time to put together a five-man lineup, as they have to get ready for the Pinnacle Cup Championship, which is slated to take place in Lund, Sweden, on June 8-11.

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