misutaaa: "I am a pillar in the team, but I want to be even more"

Vitality's Kévin "⁠misutaaa⁠" Rabier sat down with HLTV to talk about his Major debut, the relationship with his teammates as well as his aims for 2022.

After joining Vitality in March 2020 following Alex "⁠ALEX⁠" McMeekin's decision to step down from the roster, misutaaa quickly jumped from the lower tiers of French Counter-Strike to being part of one of the most successful squads in the online era alongside several household names from the French scene.

Having spent close to 20 months with Vitality, the 18-year old was able to experience his LAN debut in 2021 as well as his first Major at PGL Stockholm, helping the Frenchmen secure a top-eight finish in Sweden before ending Natus Vincere's unbeaten Nuke streak in the grand finals of BLAST Premier Fall Finals.

Now their odyssey continues at IEM Winter, where the French squad secured a top-four finish at the event after defeating Gambit in the quarter-finals. The young entry-fragger joined us ahead of Vitality's semi-final match against Virtus.pro to discuss his Major debut, IEM Winter, and all things Vitality.

In October you experienced your first Major at PGL Stockholm. How did it feel competing there and how did you approach what was the biggest event in your career to date?

The Major was for sure the biggest event of my career and the one that I had the most emotions at because it was also my first big stage. The thing is that when I first arrived at the Major, I was feeling like it was going to be like any other tournament and I was just going to enjoy CS with my teammates, but once you are there it is a weird atmosphere. When we were 0-2, it was a really weird atmosphere and felt a bit pressured for sure, but you know it's just another tournament and every player wants to win. When we came back 3-2, the emotions were so high I can't explain how it felt, everything was amazing. The first big stage in front of the crowd I was just feeling it and then after that, we played BLAST instantly and had the crowd against us... I was a bit scared at first, but then I realized that it is just amazing to play in front of people that enjoy the same thing. It was very nice to make them quiet actually, it was a very nice feeling, I am not going to lie.

After 20 months in the team, three studio LANs, and now two arena events played, do you think you have shaken the "rookie" tag off? Are you on an equal level with the rest of the team?

I still have a lot to learn for sure, there are still some moments that I don't make good decisions or I just don't think it was the right thing to do. I have my teammates to tell me "I should have done that" or "if did that too it would have been better." Rookie? I played in a couple of LANs, I am not sure if that is a lot, so it is hard to say whether I am still a rookie, but I feel like I am a pillar in the team right now and they need me to be consistent.

Moving back in time, during the final stages of the online era your rating started to go up but that level did not fully translate to LAN play. What do you think you need in order to play at that same level again?

I was not having pressure, but I was feeling a little bit less confident, so then when you talk with everyone after that and they say that 'they need you, you can do it and you have the capacity to do whatever you want' after that, I realized that I needed to play the same game. Nothing bad is going to happen, so just have fun and play CS. For the first LAN events, I didn't have a good rating, but I feel like being an entry is not the main focus to have the biggest stats, my aim right now is to make space to allow everyone to make the plays they want. Stats are okay for the star player, but people don't understand why he's having good stats, it's because this guy did the right play to make his friend shine.

Now moving forwards to IEM Winter, you beat Gambit in the quarter-finals to maintain a perfect record against the CIS side. What was the key to victory this time around?

We really know them (Gambit) well. When we were anti-stratting, shox said we have to play hyped against them and that sh1ro is always taking the rotations. We just pay attention to the nicknames and if that guy is here or that guy is there, then we move. It's apEX doing the calls and everyone is fragging. It's always nice playing against them.

Your team has reached the playoffs of the last five events, is ranked #2 in the world, and at IEM Winter you have secured a spot in the semi-finals. Do you see yourselves as favorites in the match against Virtus.pro, and for the title? How do you expect the playoffs to go?

We are having a good break and right now we have been practicing well. Playing the BLAST and the Major gave us confidence because shox and apEX really needed LANs to come back and they felt really good in the atmosphere. Just playing those two tournaments gave me an even crazier feeling about CS and that's what I want to fight for. At IEM winter we can end in a really good spot.

Is there anyone that you really don't want to face on the other side of the bracket? or do you think you can take anyone?

G2 are the favorites for sure, and if we are going to play against them, it's going to be funny because were are friends with them and we also want revenge.

XTQZZZ has been regarded highly as a coach and you were the first rookie signing he made to the squad. How much do you rely on him to develop as a player?

XTQZZZ is like a second dad, he's always making jokes and he's very serious when needed. The first time I came in the team he asked me 'what are your favorite things to do in the game?', 'What are your favorite positions?' and just about everything about the game, and we have a good friendship, that of course helps both inside and outside of the game.

shox has previously talked about your arrival to the team and his mentorship of you, what does that relationship look like from your point of view?

I feel like the whole of Vitality is like a family, you have XTQZZZ as the dad and shox as the brother, the big brother that is there for me all the time. When I came into the team, I was having a bad time and he was always defending me. I remember one time when I was having a very bad time in the team and he was there talking to me always and was emotional. It was a hard moment for me at first and he was always smiling and making jokes and being amazing to me. He's just an amazing person out of the game and I feel very happy to play with this legend of CS.

What does 2022 have in store for misutaaa? Do you have specific things you aim to improve on, personal goals?

I'd say that I am a pillar in the team, but I want to be even more. The aim for sure is to win a lot of trophies and in particular the Major next year. The last event I played gave me an amazing feeling about the game, so I just can't wait to play on the stage and in front of the crowd, it's so exciting and gives me goosebumps.