Following their unsatisfactory performance at Champions 2023, significant alterations could be on the horizon for Natus Vincere’s VALORANT squad as the VCT offseason starts to unfold.
In accordance with a report from Blix.gg on Aug. 25 by eSports journalist Alejandro “anonimotum” Gomis, the team is believed to be parting ways with top-tier duelist Mehmet “cNed” İpek. This signifies the commencement of an important restructuring for the top-ranked team as the new season approaches. Hailed as a strong European contender, NAVI possessed key players from the region, like Dmitry “Suygetsu” Ilyushin, Andrey “Shao” Kiprsky, and Pontus “Zyppan” Eek.
Throughout the year 2023, however, they didn’t manage to reach the highest level of competition. With a fourth-place result in the EMEA League, getting knocked out early at Masters Tokyo, taking the runner-up spot in the EMEA Last Chance Qualifiers, and ultimately, performing poorly at the Champions of that year, NAVI was left with no alternative.
Despite the underwhelming team performance, the 21-year-old showed promising performance, notably in the EMEA League. His average combat score was the sixth highest, and his average damage per round was the eighth highest, as documented by the competitive VALORANT stats aggregate VLR.gg.
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The rising star might face some hardship as a result of Riot’s major nerfs to Jett, which is predicted to lead to her absence from the competitive and solo queue meta. Nevertheless, cNed’s aptitude for fragging should not be discounted on other agents like Neon, Raze, and Yoru, and it should assist him in securing a spot in a new team quickly—if he is indeed being let go in the offseason.
If he does depart the team, it’s uncertain as to where he’ll end up. Nonetheless, as the VCT Champions concluded this past weekend, signifying the beginning of the offseason, it’s likely that a number of teams will be reshuffling their rosters, potentially creating a spot for the talented Turkish player.