Sources: nexa exploring options as he targets summer CSGO return

OG benched player Nemanja ‘⁠nexa⁠’ Isaković is weighing up his options as he is looking to return to activity in the near future, Dexerto has learned.

The 26-year-old has been out of action since mid-February, when he stepped back from OG’s starting lineup due to personal reasons and was replaced by benched player Nikolaj ‘niko’ Kristensen.

At the time, OG did not put a timetable for nexa’s return but it said that niko would be with the team “for the rest of the Major circuit”. nexa played no part as OG qualified for the BLAST Paris Major, where it ended up finishing in 20th-22nd place after winning just one match in the Challengers Stage.

In the last three months, no updates about nexa’s status have been provided, but Dexerto knows that the player is targeting a summer return. Just like his teammate Shahar ’flameZ’ Shushan, he is currently exploring his options, including remaining with OG.

Sources told Dexerto that nexa doesn’t rule out continuing as an in-game leader, though he is also entertaining the possibility of moving into a different role. He joined OG from G2 Esports in January 2022, taking over the captaincy from Aleksi ’Aleksib’ Virolainen, who moved in the opposite direction.

Success has been hard to come by since then, but in his first year with the team, he was able to lead it to the IEM Rio Major — ending the organization’s long quest for a Major appearance — and to a semi-final run at the BLAST Premier World Final.

Since the end of the Paris Major, OG’s squad has been a fervent source of conjecture. Questions remain about the long-term future of star player Abdulkhalik ‘degster’ Gasanov, who decided to take some time off from competition after the Major.

And according to a report from Blix.gg, OG are set to part ways with niko, who has been with the organization since March 2021.

At the upcoming IEM Dallas event, degster will be replaced by Romanian AWPer Iulian ‘regali’ Harjău, a free agent since Copenhagen Flames shut down operations.