Bambino: "Coming into Shanghai, we have a lot we need to work on."

Note: This article is a text port of our live interview with Bambino . The video interview can be found here.

This series might not have gone the way for you guys, but you guys are still locked in for Champions Shanghai. Could you give me a little of your thought process on how this year went for you regionally before we get to international?

Kickoff was very bad. I mean, I don't know if you remember, it was so long ago, but it was before our roster changes and we went 0-3 and we knew things had to change within the team. And so we brought in s0pp, sociablEE, Vlad, and I mean, regionally we performed very well. We went 4-1 in Stage 1 and 3-2 in Stage 2 groups. I think both times we failed in the finals weekend. We lost both upper bracket finals and lower bracket finals in both splits, so clearly that is like a stumbling point for us that we have to figure out. But, I would say overall the year has been successful so far. I mean, Masters and Champs is good. And obviously these losses can't take away from our previous wins, but we definitely have way more work to do before we can call it just a good year generally, you know?

You guys have a really interesting roster in the sense that you've picked up sociablEE, who's not very young, but you've also picked up s0pp, who's very young. This kind of mix of rookies and the talent, What's it like for you guys working with that? How do you guys integrate it in your practices, your matches, making sure that your players get where they need to be and are developing correctly?

I mean, obviously when you work with young players like s0pp, most of the time they're very hungry and eager to learn and they'll often ask lots of questions. s0pp's great at this. He definitely doesn't feel like he's king of the world, even though he plays really well, so I really enjoy working with him. And a lot of it is just, you know, overseeing his development. I mean, s0pp is, to talk specifically for a minute, full crazy. We have to accept that there is a certain threshold of rounds he will throw and this is part of his development and that's that. But there is also a certain amount of rounds he will win you on his own. And as long as that number outweighs the previous, we're good, you know? And so I think a lot of it is kind of just making sure he's developing in the right way and also just developing as a person. He's 18, he had to move to Berlin and so just providing him kind of guidance as a person, as a teammate and making sure that, because he has the talent to be a superstar player, he doesn't get the kind of diva qualities that some of the other superstar players get.

Let's talk about the topic of superstars. You did mention that sometimes [s0pp is] going to throw you some rounds, sometimes he's going to win you those rounds. There is a fine line when it comes to that kind of thing that we've seen. The successful superstars on these other teams, even the Challengers teams, they've made it pretty far or at least performed very well on their own merits. Do you think that it's kind of essential for a team nowadays to have that kind of superstar? Do you think [that factor is] important for that team to perform not just regionally, but internationally?

Yeah, I think so, to be honest. The coach inside me really wants to say no, and really wants to say you can muddyball a project that's going to win. But I think when you look at consistently top performing teams, they have superstars and I think that at the end of the day, Valorant is a shooting game and sometimes you just need a little bit of magic and you need players that can generate magic. I think that is often what gets you over the line of close games. I think you can win regionally, I think you can do well, but I think when things get tight and you just you need a moment, you need a guy who can get you a moment, you know, and I think when you look at top teams that's across the board, they've got a guy.

Let's talk about this magic for a second. We've seen this at internationals, regionals, in really important matches with high stakes where sometimes the team throws. Sometimes you don't get that round that you need and [broadcast will] cut back to the coaching booth and we'll see some frustration, some emotions. What's it like when you're kind of riding on that magic to win you certain matches? When you're at that point where you need the magic to win those matches, sometimes it doesn't go your way. How does it feel when it does go your way? How does it feel when it doesn't go your way?

It's obviously never something you want to rely on, right? Because it's [such a] coin flip. When it goes your way, it feels great and it can really solve problems. We're a team that plays heavy. When we have the momentum in the game, we play very well. And I think what you saw, for example, was when we never got the momentum in a game. We played very poorly. I feel like these magic rounds can really just give you the momentum you need and the whole team mental shifts. But of course, when we [lose] 5v3s, 4v2s and we're still trying to cast spells and do magic and we lose like that, of course, that's frustrating, you know? Obviously, what you see in the coach booth is like just the most raw reaction and emotion. But sometimes you have to just let it out so you can refocus on the next. So it's, of course, very frustrating when [we] lose. But I think we have to remember and we have to remind ourselves that it averages out over 50 and it sucks when [we] lose, but we average out over 50. So we're okay and it's not the end of the world.

Let's look towards Shanghai. You guys are heading in against the other top teams of the world as well. And you guys are a team that has performed very well in internationals as well. Do you expect that with the development you've made and the progress you've made over the year that you guys are heading to Shanghai with a chip on your shoulder or are you guys just super confident that you guys can make a deep run?

We definitely have a chip on our shoulder for sure. But what I will say is [that] I would rather have two matches like this now than two matches like this in Shanghai. It's very true that when you lose, you learn. And I think it's important that we take the lessons from this weekend and we put them into our Champs prep and we can definitely go to Champs strong. I mean, the exact same thing happened in Split 1 before London. We lost to Vitality. We got destroyed in the best of five by Heretics, similar to this. And we were able to really channel that into [a] really quality London run. And so I 100% believe we can do the same as long as we're proactive now and we start fixing problems tonight.

I want to focus on you now. It's been a journey for you. You were on OGLU, you were on KOI and all of that and now you're here. What's it like personally, at least to you? How do you feel that you've kind of just made it on one of these top teams and not just made it, but [also] helped develop them into an even better team? How does it feel for you, knowing the progress that you've made has kind of been worth it?

I've had a lot of ups and downs in my career and way more downs than ups, you know? KOI for three years was really something. I still have a lot of love for the org, but it was really challenging. After last year, after KOI was kicked from the league, I thought my career was done. I thought nobody would hire me. And then I was so fortunate to get called up for FUT. They came to me. I didn't even come to them. I was shocked. To be able to work with such hungry players and to be able to really find a partner in Vlad [where] we agree a lot and we work very well together, it [turned] my whole career around and I'm just so incredibly grateful. I'm very grateful for FUT. I'm very grateful for my teammates. I'm very grateful to be given this second or fourth chance to finally do something. It's true that the whole career we work for Masters and we work for Champs, so [in] that qualifier moment [I] was just so elated. I was [in] so much joy because I really thought, I really did think that I might never achieve this and I'd made my peace. [Since] I was given the opportunity, I'm just hungrier than ever to go to China, play in China, and just do well and show something. That's really important to me because you never know when it's going to be your last, right?

We've got a new system next year. There's going to be less spots, there's going to be an open cup and everything. I want to know how you feel about that and how you feel about FUT's chances, assuming that you're still continuing with them next year, heading into that kind of system and how well you guys might do.

I think it's very exciting. I think definitely for fans and like players to an extent, this system really benefits. People want to play more games and getting the opportunity to do that is really good. It does sacrifice some stability, but at the same time, I think let's just play more. I'm happy with it. Talking about FUT, I think the big key thing to focus on here is that the Turkish region is separate next year. So that's going to be really interesting. I think it probably opens the door for one or two Turkish superteams to be built. I think it's also really interesting that Turkish players that are currently playing on EMEA teams are going to have to really weigh up where they want to be and where they want to play next year. I rate FUT's chances very highly. FUT is a very good org, in my opinion, the best org in Turkey. They do things correctly. And I know that whatever happens, Champs, whatever happens in this offseason, that there will be a good project representing FUT next year. They've always been, historically, apart from a minor dip, the best team in Turkey. And I expect that to keep happening.

Is there anything you're going to do specifically ahead of Shanghai to prepare for it, whether it be relaxing, training or anything of the sort.

The team is going to take a short break now. I think this is important. We've been on the go a lot and the boys have been away from home. They've been in Berlin for so long that I think it's really important right now. We take a few days at least. We just reset ourselves from this loss, and then after that, it's a lot of preparation. Coming into Shanghai, we have a lot we need to work on. We need some new comps. We need to really tighten up certain fundamentals. After a short break, it's going to be a full grind on the way to Shanghai. But that's why we do this, right? So, I'm just excited to get going. Looking forward to a little break. And then I can't wait to just hit the ground running and really just build steam into Shanghai.