Fnatic has announced the addition of Swedish up-and-comer Peppe “Peppzor” Borak to its CS:GO roster. The Swedish organization will be fielding a six-man roster for the foreseeable future. Apart from the new pick up, Fnatic has also announced some role changes within its starting roster, with January signing Jack “Jackinho” Ström Mattsson taking over as the main AWPer, while long-time veteran Jesper “JW” Wecksell will be transitioning into a more primary rifler role.
Announcing some changes in Fnatic CS:GO.
Welcome to the Black and Orange @PeppzorCSGO 💪
— FNATIC (@FNATIC) April 22, 2021
Fnatic themselves have been struggling as of late. Long known as a premier team in the Counter-Strike scene, the Swedish organization has found itself battling it out on the outskirts of the regional scene. Their results against top tier opposition have been lackluster for quite some time now. Although the team has shown flashes of promise (most notably finishing in third place at Flashpoint Season 2 and as the runners up at cs_summit 7), their current form is a far cry compared to past times. Veteran JW has seen the biggest drop in form, with his HLTV rating falling to an abysmal 0,86 in the past three months.
With the signing of Peppzor, Fnatic has continued its run of acquiring young talent and preparing for a life after KRIMZ and JW. Peppzor himself is a 18-year-old Swedish rifle, who has been competing on a professional level for the past two years, most notably with Swedish sides Team Anicent and Lilmix. He will join the team as the official sixth-man, with the aim of “diversifying Fnatic’s gameplay” and “integrating himself properly into the team”.
“I am thrilled to have Peppe onboard on this project. He plays a rifle role, often as an anchor. He’s one of the best young talents in the game with tons of potential. ”, Fnatic CS:GO Head Coach Andreas Samuelsson stated.
What does the future hold for Fnatic?
With the current state of affairs, Fnatic have a long road in front of them if they want to regain past glory. The team has voiced doubts about fielding a six man roster, but also stated the change will give their roster a “much needed shakeup”. With the changing of the guard looking imminent, the new kids on the block will have their chance at helping the organization achieve past heights sooner rather than later.
“We don’t know yet if rosters beyond five players are the future for Counter-Strike, but an injection of something different into our team is a risk we believe is worth taking. As other teams have experienced, a six-man roster is not yet a perfect system, but for now this experiment will give our roster a much-needed shakeup, while allowing Peppzor to develop his phenomenal talent away from the pressure of official matches.”, Fnatic stated.
Fnatic’s new lineup will be making its debut at Flashpoint Season 3 in two weeks. CS:GO Betting on Fnatic is looking a bit iffy at the moment, but if the roster change pays dividends, we just might see their odds improve on the big stages.
Source: https://www.esportsbets.com/news/fnatic-adds-peppzor-as-sixth-man/
