NEO Reflects on FaZe Departure and Astralis' Future Challenges
Astralis
FaZeFilip "NEO" Kubski discusses his transition from FaZe to Astralis and the lessons learned during his coaching journey.
Filip "NEO" Kubski is gearing up for his LAN debut as the new head coach of Astralis, having recently left FaZe after nearly three years. His tenure with FaZe ended earlier this year, and he has already begun working with the Astralis roster, which is seeking to maximize its potential.
Reflecting on his departure from FaZe, NEO stated, "I can understand the point of view, and I don't want to get into details too much, but the team needed some changes, and changing the coach is one of the first steps orgs tend to take. So it's part of the game, no grudges, it is what it is. But I've learned my lesson." His focus now shifts to harnessing his experiences to better Astralis's performance.
Expressing optimism about his new team, NEO emphasized the importance of a positive environment: "It felt really nice, refreshing to be in a new environment with different personalities, getting to know everyone as people and as players. I like what I see, there's huge potential in the team, a lot of work for sure, but it's nice to be back."
With Rasmus "HooXi" Nielsen at the helm, NEO acknowledges a different coaching relationship than what he had with Finn "karrigan" Andersen at FaZe. He noted, "I've only known karrigan's ways of doing things. Now I'm working with HooXi, getting to know him, he has a different approach, different ways of handling things, so I'm learning that as well."
NEO also touched on the team's recent mixed results, including a strong performance at Bounty and challenges during the StarSeries qualifier. He labeled these variations as part of the adjustment phase for both him and the roster. He remarked, "The journey so far wasn't terrible, it wasn't ideal either, but there's room for improvement for sure, and you can see the potential. There's just plenty of work ahead of us."
With the return of Cache to the competitive map pool, NEO is keen to leverage his knowledge of the map to help his team adjust quicker. He expressed enthusiasm about integrating new strategies, saying, "Knowing the map and having played it in the past, I have some ideas for the guys on how to play their positions and execute certain strats."
As Astralis prepares for upcoming competitions, NEO remains focused on constant improvement and stability within the team, aiming for better results moving forward.