The performance of the Valorant team of the Fnatic e-Sport clique was not really convincing in the last weeks.
The responsible persons have acted and announced two new signings. Ali “Alfajer” Beder moves from Surreal eSports to Fnatic. The second newcomer is an old acquaintance Enzo “Enzo” Mestari, who was already active at Fnatic in the past.
The reasons are not only sportive
The results in the past tournaments are one reason for the two new contracts. However, it is true that Fnatic has not really covered itself with glory outside of the sport. Andrey “BraveAF” Gorchakov, who drew a “Z” on the screen during a break in the game at the VCT Masters in Reykjavik, made negative headlines. The screenshot became public. The Russian expressed his support for his country in the war with Ukraine. Gorchakov was benched by the tournament organizer and subsequently suspended by Fnatic as well.
In April, Martin “Magnum” Peňkov was also removed from the squad, although in his case it was only his poor performance that led to his exclusion.
Alfaje and Enzo – the qualities
The double change in the Fnatic line-up is already causing a stir. The eSports clan is one of the organizations with the fewest lineup changes in recent months. Enzo might be known to many fans under the name Fearoth, under which he was a Counter Strike player. Valorant was the last player Mestari played at Alliance. He was a substitute player at the Masters in Reykjavik and was convincing from start to finish. For Fnatic it was almost logical to sign Enzo for a longer period. Coach Jacob “mini” Harri said the following about his new player:
“His main strengths are his support skills, both in and out of the game. He's that rare guy who can put up numbers and be the teammate you want at the same time.”
The second newbie at Fnatic Ali “Alfajer” Beder is just 16 years old, but still has enough tournament experience to show for it. With his Surreal Clan, he missed qualifying for the EMEA Challengers by a razor-thin margin just a few days ago, after a playoff loss to Germany's BIG Clique. The young Turkish pro is expected to develop into a star player at Fnatic. Coach Harri will give him the time he needs to do so. The transition from a small team to a big eSports clan is not always easy.
Boaster moves to the Smoke position
It is also clear that Jake “Boaster” Howlett, the previous in-game leader of Fnatic, will move back to Smoke position in the upcoming tournaments. James “Mistic” Orfila, meanwhile, will step up into Flex role. Newcomer Enzo is logically planned as a support player, but can certainly take on a broader role if needed. Alfajer has mostly taken the role of guard at Surreal, but has also shown his qualities duelist, raze and sentinel. The Turk is expected to perform flexibly. The development of the 16-year-old remains exciting.
The new Fnatic Valorant Line-Up at a glance
Jake “Boaster” Howlett
Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev
James “Mistic” Orfila
Enzo “Enzo” Mestari
Emir “Alfajer” Ali Beder
Jacob “mini” Harri (Coach)
