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Team Vitality: New Roster, New Opportunities

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Before the start of the 2021 season, Team Vitality was rumoured to be starting a new super team which would have shocked the entire league. However, the rumours ended up staying as a rumour, as the new team that they eventually created for the start of the season was, well… lacklustre. That roster has now completely been revamped for the start of summer and there should be much excitement.

The initially announced roster at the start of the 2021 season with Szygenda, Skeanz, Milica, Comp, and Labrov has completely been revamped and four of the five players have now been replaced.

The new roster that Vitality is fielding consists of SLT, Selfmade, LIDER, Crownshot, and the only remaining member of the original team, Labrov. This new roster has the firepower that the previous roster lacked, but now has all eyes watching it due to their larger than life personalities, and aggressive playstyle.

Team Vitality 2021 LEC Summer Split Roster Announcement
(Credit: Twitter)

Without going into the drama that led to the formation that led to this roster, Team Vitality’s new team is looking strong and they’re looking to do damage during the LEC Summer Split and hopefully qualify for worlds.

Going into the 2021 season, expectations for Selfmade were extremely high due to his stellar performance throughout the 2020 season. It was during this season that Selfmade had established himself as the best jungler in Europe, and part of an elite class of players that would perform on the world stage.

The past two seasons on Fnatic have been rocky, but Selfmade was always there when they needed someone to step up. At times, specifically at the 2020 World Championship, Selfmade was patching holes that his team was making. This was especially evident during the series against TOP Esports when they were eliminated in a heartbreaking five-game series.

Credit: Riot Games

Selfmade is known for his strong mechanics, aggression, and most importantly his ability to carry games. Selfmade proved that in the 2020 season by picking his signature Evelynn and impressing everyone through exploring kill opportunities.

He showed that his damage-dealing carry jungle picks are a true danger and that he is able to be extremely effective when they need him the most. However, there was a major meta change to engage crow control junglers during 2021, which ultimately was not his strong suit, which contributed to the underperformance of Fnatic during this season.

Selfmade infamously was part of L9 and holds a reputation for being toxic. However, this can also be seen as a desire to win and succeed. A player as talented as him deserves the best from his teammates and he is aware of that.

Another roster move that Team Vitality made was to sign LIDER from mousesports. Selfmade has previously stated that he wants to play with LIDER and the aggression that the two can provide will lead to strong synergy.

Unlike most players in LIDER’s position, he likes to play assassins instead of mages. In fact, he is actually known for his off-meta comfort picks. While playing in the European Region Leagues, LIDER effectively was breaking the meta with the champions he was using.

Traditionally mid laners like Twisted Fate, Orianna, Syndra, and Azir are stapled champions. However, LIDER has only played one of these champions during the 2021 season. That being Azir four times. Instead, he prefers to play Akali, Irelia, Yasuo, Sylas, and even Zed.

Statistically, in the ERLs, LIDER has been completely dominant. This is evident through his KDA(4.6), AVG Assists (8), CSPM (8.9), and DMG% (29.9%). LIDER led these stats against his position during the Prime League 2020 Grand Finals.

Team Vitality LEC Roster
Credit: Team Vitality

With the new additions, Team Vitality look to improve this season and qualify for the 2021 World Championship. They need to be precise in their play, in order to succeed. If that can be done, they can truly have an opportunity to leave their mark as a strong team this summer,

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