Gamers2 has some positive roster news to announce amid a torrent of controversy over the alleged poaching of its players. The team has signed a “world class” jungler—former Unicorns of Love player Mateusz “Kikis” Szkudlarek.
The team is currently in the middle of a Challenger Series run that now sees them in the playoffs of the amateur competition, nearing a possible promotion series and a shot at reaching the League Championship Series (LCS). The team has posted a 5-2 record through three weeks of the season, good for second in the Challenger Series.
“Kikis is a top three jungler in Europe and I feel that I can once again help his personal development for his career since he still has a lot left to show,” Joe “Innerflame” Elouassi, the team’s manager, said. “He knows that, he’s motivated to show the hunger required for being the best and I am certain that is a possibility.”
Szkudlarek will replace Nubar “Maxlore” Sarafian, who substituted for the team over the past two weeks after Berk “Gilius” Demir left the squad. Sarafian helped the team earn wins against both Denial and Ex Nihilo. But a talent like Szkudlarek, a key part of Unicorns of Love’s run to second the LCS finals last season, was too much for Gamers2 to pass up.
“I have decided to join Gamers2 because I find both the team and the organisation very promising,” Szkudlarek explained. “Every player in this team is individually skilled and I think I can bring all of the pieces together into one. Under our manager Innerflame’s wing, we don’t have to worry about anything outside of the game and we can purely focus on qualifying for LCS.”
Of course, that may not be true for Gamers2 as a whole. The organization was recently embroiled in more controversy thanks to firing a salvo against Chris Badawi and Renegades, who imported former Gamers2 AD carry Mohammed “Jébus” Tokhi earlier this year. But as Szkudlarek says, he doesn’t have to worry about that. His concern is making perennial Challenger Series competitors into an LCS-quality side, and based off their Challenger Series results so far this season, they may be closer to that than ever before with Szkudlarek in the lineup.
