Karrigan insists olofmeister is a “permanent solution” for FaZe

FaZe in-game leader Finn ‘karrigan’ Andersen has rejected the notion that Olof ‘olofmeister’ Kajbjer is a band-aid solution until the team figure out what to do.

Olofmeister is currently in his fifth stint with FaZe after returning to the team in June to fill the slot of then benched player Marcelo ‘coldzera’ David.

A two-time Major winner, olofmeister has occasionally struggled for form in recent years, but his reliability remains a constant. Former FaZe member Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kovač explained in January how olofmeister’s impact transcends mere numbers as the Swedish player has the ability to make those around him better.

With olofmeister back on the roster, FaZe reached the semi-finals at IEM Cologne, cementing their status as a LAN team after a long period of online struggle.

And karrigan, who returned to FaZe in February after two years with mousesports, has no doubt that olofmeister’s addition and the deep run in Cologne have given the team much-needed stability.

“It’s hard, coming into a lineup, to know what’s missing to be number one in the world,” karrigan told Dexerto. “When I came in, Twistzz had just joined, the synergy had changed, and I could see olof’s return making sense, in that he could improve everyone and help other players to perform.

“He is a permanent solution. When we took him in, we knew it wasn’t like a two-month thing, but rather something like, ‘Let’s see where we can go with this’.

“We know olof, we know what he is capable of and what we can bring to the team. It was not the right time to make a huge gamble before we could see what we were missing.

“We’ve been playing together for three months and being ranked top 4 [top 6 now] in the world is a pretty good showing from the team, which lacked confidence for a long time.”

A ‘tough’ task

FaZe are about to enter a crucial stage of the tournament season. At the end of September, they will attend IEM Fall, the final Regional Major Ranking (RMR) tournament in Europe.

A lot is riding on the outcome of that event as FaZe are currently outside of the qualification zone for PGL Major Stockholm.

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But before that tournament, FaZe will first have to play in the BLAST Premier Fall Groups. Complexity will be their first opponent in a group that also includes NAVI and OG, with question marks hanging all over the ‘Juggernaut’ as they make their first appearance with coldzera, who is replacing the injured Kristian ‘k0nfig’ Wienecke.

“It’s going to be tough, for sure, we’re playing a team we cannot prepare for,” karrigan explained. “coldzera is a great player, he knows a lot about us and how I think about the game.

“I think Complexity have had a tough time lately with stand-ins and now with this unfortunate situation with k0nfig, who is a really important player for the team.

“I don’t really know what to expect from them. They have a few passive players now, they’re missing k0nfig, who is a really aggressive player.”

Big setback

Karrigan is one of the high-profile players who have commented on the alleged complicity of Heroic’s players in the spectator bug use by former team coach Nicolai ‘HUNDEN’ Petersen.

On Twitter, the Danish tactician said that, if HUNDEN’s claims are confirmed, he will feel “disgusted” by the players’ role in the scandal and that it will be “a pure disgrace” to the game.

Asked about the impact of this scandal on the Danish CS:GO scene, which for years has been at the highest level in the game, karrigan admitted to being worried.

“I don’t want to talk too much about it before there’s a decision,” he said. “I just feel sad. A lot of people have been working hard for the team, have helped these players become what they are today, because they are great players.

“It’s bad for Danish CS, which has been a top-three nation in CS:GO for the last seven or eight years. Heroic is the new generation, with young players, and they’ve been fighting to dethrone Astralis.

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“I’m just sad that this might be true. I feel sad for the players and for everybody in the Danish scene. Some might think I’m happy, but I just think it’s disrespectful that this might have been happening.

“If this really is true, it’s a disgrace to what I’ve been a part of for 20 years.”