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PSG.LGD made a shocking roster move earlier today. The Chinese giants completed a direct player swap, sending Wang “Ame” Chunyu to CDEC in exchange for Lai “Ahjit” Jay Son.
A string of lackluster results in the 2019-20 Dota Pro Circuit season has prompted PSG.LGD to make changes to a roster untouched since 2018. The Chinese giants haven’t managed to accrue a single DPC point after choosing to take a break for the first Major of the season before flunking out in the second round of the open qualifiers for the Leipzig Major.
PSG.LGD receives Ahjit from CDEC, an up-and-coming carry player who has big shoes to fill. The player hails from Malaysia and has been stuck on tier-two teams in Southeast Asia and China for years now. Undoubtedly, PSG.LGD will be one of the toughest challenges for the unproven player.
While PSG.LGD’s results have been disappointing so far, the decision to change out Ame might not have been a purely team-based choice.
The organization’s official announcement on Weibo mentioned that it was respecting the player’s decisions and need for personal development and said the decision had gone through internal discussions within the club.
Chinese denizens have reacted to the move, generally in sympathy of Ame. Several posts used his nickname, “A Emperor,” and considered Ame to still be one of the best carries in China.
The first comment reads: “You guys really believe that Ame is no longer good…?”
Similar sentiments were echoed throughout the community, mentioning that Ame wasn’t just one of the best carry players China had to offer, but he was one of the most stable performers on the team.
Ame has had a long and illustrious career with LGD. The player was initially recruited from CDEC Youth in 2016. He quickly grew into a premier carry along with superstar Lu “Somnus” Yao and was an integral part of PSG.LGD’s repeated Major championships and International podium placings. Now, he’ll be returning back to where it all began.
CDEC started life as an academy offshoot of the LGD brand, taking its namesake from the Chinese Dota Elite Community, a premier in-house league. The team drew heavily from the community of pubstars and excelled beyond expectations, especially at TI5 where they beat LGD en route to a runners-up placing.
Now, an internal rivalry just might be ignited again. PSG.LGD will have to start from the bottom once again, slogging through the open qualifiers on Feb. 12, whereas CDEC will await them in the closed qualifiers for the ESL One Los Angeles Major beginning Feb. 14.
