zakk: "We lost our leader in FalleN and now we're trying to get to know who we are"

ESL Pro League will be Imperial's second event without their former captain, FalleN.

Imperial took a bold step in early 2022 and signed Gabriel "⁠FalleN⁠" Toledo's Last Dance project, which earned them immediate popularity among the enthusiastic Brazilian fanbase. While no one knew what to expect from that team, they exceeded community expectations. The Brazilians qualified for their first Major in Antwerp and were a fringe top 20 team throughout 2022.

The team then underwent a series of transformations. Lincoln "⁠fnx⁠" Lau assumed the head coach role in preparation for their hometown Major in Rio but departed the squad by the year's end, as Rafael "⁠zakk⁠" Fernandes took over as coach. Fernando "⁠fer⁠" Alvarenga also packed up his bags at the end of 2022, a move that left FalleN as the only member of the legendary Luminosity / SK lineup still on the roster.

FalleN couldn't pass up the chance to join FURIA during the summer break, and his departure left the Imperial team in need of a rebuild and a new IGL. "Losing FalleN was a big hit," Imperial's coach zakk said about losing their captain. "He is the greatest IGL that I've ever seen in my life. He has a good system, one that works in tier-one competition, but it is what it is. We had to adapt."

FalleN also took Marcelo "⁠chelo⁠" Cespedes with him to FURIA, which meant that the team needed to fill two roster openings. Luckily, Brazil is a nation with a plethora of talented players and Imperial found their choice in the experienced duo of João "⁠felps⁠" Vasconcellos and Henrique "⁠HEN1⁠" Teles.

"HEN1 came in with a lot of ideas, he is a very energetic guy who wants to talk and needs space," zakk said. "He's helping us help him, because he needs our help to play the style that he wants to. He's also much more aggressive than FalleN was, he's a completely different player, so there's nothing to compare between both of them."

"For felps, I think he stayed in Brazil for a long time in the last few years, and to play on the tier-one level is a different kind of Counter-Strike when you face the teams we are facing. He's also very dedicated, he's the first one to go to the PC and he's very open-minded, he listens a lot, too," zakk raved.

"But compared to chelo, I think he's also very different. chelo needs a bit more guidance while felps has his own perspective of the game, he takes his own decisions, and that's very good as well. He's learning that he also needs to listen to us, and take a step back sometimes, because he's too aggressive."

While the two new additions filled the void on the roster, the squad was still without a dedicated IGL. "VINI didn't want to IGL in the beginning but now he's doing a very good job," zakk admitted about their new captain. "He is a smart guy, he's dedicated and always looking for new stuff, and I think this is a thing that a good IGL needs to have."

A new IGL usually comes with a change in philosophy, and Imperial is no different, although zakk does say that FalleN's influence is still felt in the team's playstyle. "It's a different system than FalleN had, but we're trying to implement the good things we learned from him. VINI and boltz played with FalleN for a longer time than me, and they learned from him. Now we are doing our best by combining the two worlds of FalleN and VINI."

Armed with a new IGL and an experienced duo that aims to fill the void left by FalleN's departure, the Brazilians attended IEM Cologne in July. The new-look Imperial showed some admirable performances at the Play-In stage, but a close-fought loss to Ninjas in Pyjamas meant they missed out on a spot at the group stage. "Looking back at it, I think it was very positive, we had a good chance to go to the group stage. We lost a very close match against NIP, and we had only been practicing for two weeks tops before that tournament.

"We learned a lot about our team. It was VINI's first tournament as an IGL so everything was new. Now we are more prepared, we had more time to discuss a lot of things, so I'm looking forward to the EPL," zakk said with optimism.

Imperial didn't play a single official game since their exit at IEM Cologne and instead focused on their preparation. zakk says that was always the plan for the team, who wanted to remain a surprise for their opponents ahead of EPL. "We stayed in Brazil for one month, but we practiced every day. We practiced every map, we changed everything we did in Cologne because we don't want to be anti-stratted. Since we played just Cologne, I think this was a good choice. We have a long playbook and I think we're ready."

Imperial come into Group C of ESL Pro League as the fifth-highest-ranked team, but FaZe and Natus Vincere are the only two squads that seem out of reach for the Brazilians. "Our goal is to go to the playoffs. We have a strong group, everyone in the group knows how to play CS and they are very prepared for the tournament," zakk said about their opponents.

"No one knows if this is going to be the last CS:GO tournament, so I think everyone is putting in the hours and the energy to go to the playoffs, but I think this is our time."

Despite his fighting words ahead of the tournament in Malta, zakk knows that the team will need time to gel and get used to their new order. "We lost our IGL and leader in FalleN, and now we're trying to get to know who we are, what style fits us best in the game on the T side and CT side. I think until the CS2 Major, it is a learning process about identifying who we are.

"The results are of course very important. We want to win every single match we play, but we are in the process of knowing who Imperial is, who VINI as an IGL is, and how HEN1 and felps can change to fit our style better. We used to play very slow on the T side, not going on the site until 15 seconds left. I think this is very good, but we need to mix both styles, so that's the process we are still facing until CS2."