CSGO veteran and Na`Vi captain Zeus confirms retirement plan

Counter-Strike legend Danylo ‘Zeus’ Teslenko has announced that he will be retiring after BLAST Pro Series Moscow 2019 – leaving Natus Vincere with a few questions about their roster.

Zeus is one of the most experienced Counter-Strike players in the world, having competed in the original game since 2004, followed by stepping into CS:GO when it released back in 2012.

He has competed at countless events and even had the honor of winning a CS:GO Major in 2017, captaining Gambit to PGL Krakow glory, but has now settled on his last event after a long and successful career.

The Ukrainian first revealed his plans for retirement in December 2018, when he spoke to HLTV, telling them that 2019 would be his final year as a player. On September 2, it was reported by Dexerto’s own DeKay that Na’vi were considering a roster reshuffle – with the belief that BLAST Pro Series Moscow would be Zeus’ final event with the team.

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This was confirmed through an announcement on September 9 on Na`Vi’s website, with his last event taking place from September 13 – 14.

“It was a tough decision — I have been thinking about it for a while… I believed our new roster could win a Major, or make it into the finals at least. But we lost early on, and I realize I need to give way to the youth” said Zeus.

He also spoke about his future plans, saying he wants to “develop esports in CIS, build a pro academy, and engage with the young.” A key detail he added is that he does not plan to go into coaching anytime soon, so it’s unlikely that we’ll see him taking on the spot of Na`Vi moving forward.

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No replacement has yet been confirmed for the Ukranian, however, it is likely that Kirill ‘Boombl4’ Mikhailov will fill the in-game leader role for Natus Vincere, as Zeus picked Kirill for the squad specifically to mold him as his replacement.