1. How did you first get into professional Valorant, and what inspired you to pursue it as a career?

Before Valorant released, when i was only 15, I started to stream and compete in a fighting game called Brawlhalla. I won a few lower tier tournaments and instantly loved the feeling of competing from that point. However, I always loved FPS games and when VALORANT was announced I knew I wanted to get good and move my focus to that, and grinded since the day one of beta. During the start of 2022, I received my first salaried contract at Patchwork, which helped me realise the possibility of a future within the game, and was the moment I wanted to truly make this dream I had into a career.

2. Can you share some highlights from your journey through teams like K10, TeamOrangeGaming, and Patchwork?

At TeamOrangeGaming, I attended my first bootcamp in Germany which was a surreal experience. We spent close to a week in their private facility, and took part in other cool experiences around the city. This time made me value how important team synergy is, and how much a bootcamp can transform a team. After this, in K10, we won back to back splits of VRC benelux; the second of which we played the playoffs at a bootcamp in London, which was an incredible feeling being able to share the victory with my teammates. This was my first experience in a team which was the strongest in our respective region, and the constant victory was a great feeling!

3. What motivated you to join GTZ Esports, and how has your experience been with the team so far?

What motivated me to join GTZ was the ability to gain experience and prove myself in a VCL league. I knew the players and staff of GTZ were incredibly hard working and passionate individuals, and was confident that I would learn alot being there which would help me in my future career, and to this day I'm always learning within this team. My experience with them has had its ups and downs, we definitely havent been able to show our full potential within officials as of yet, but I'm confident our time is soon to come where people will see how hard we have worked and how strong of a level we can perform at. However, aside from that, working alongside every single one of these players/coaches has been a pleasure and I hope to find success with no-one other than them at this point in my career.

4. What is your main role within GTZ Esports, and how do you contribute to the team's overall strategy?

Within GTZ, I have taken on the role of CO-IGL. I workly closely with our Ingame Leader (Kayn), to add onto his calls and take alot of the stress off his shoulders with making mid round reactions, etc. This role has been a learning curve for me, since it's my first time in a leadership role within a team; however in recent times it's starting to work very well and proves valuable to our overall strategy as a team.

5. How do you prepare for matches both individually and as a team?

During preparation for important matches, we tend to focus alot more on ourselves than antistratting. We are confident if we are able to play our own game to perfection, it will benefit us alot more than just antistratting and hoping our opponents dont try new things. As an individual, I do some personal research on the opponents ahead of the game and find any new lineups or ideas I may need in order to counter how they play.

6. How do you adapt to different team dynamics when transitioning between teams like K10, TeamOrangeGaming, and Patchwork?

In my older teams such as Patchwork and TeamOrangeGaming, the team dynamic was alot more loose and less-structured than my more recent team experiences. During those times I played very aggressive roles (Duelist and chamber), which meant I played with alot of freedom to basically do what I want aslong as I called for it. On the other hand, my more recent teams like K10 and GTZ have been alot more structured, valuing collective over individual. Also, in these teams I played more supportive roles and therefore didnt have as much freedom to make whatever plays I wanted at all times.

7. What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced in your professional career, and how have you overcome them?

I would say the biggest challenge I have faced in my career so far was losing the French relegation during my time at K10. This was the toughest loss of my life, and was a very hard mental battle having to bounce back and find the motivation to continue working towards my goal afterwards. We worked non stop for close to 8 months for that one spot in the French VCL, and falling at the final hurdle hurt the most. I just kept believing in myself and working hard unconditionally, until I finally received the chance to play in VCL at GTZ.

8. How do you prepare for important matches in the Portuguese league?

My match day preparation consists alot of mental preparation over warmup. I go on a walk in the sun, have a healthy lunch, do some meditation and just overall get in the best mindset I can for the official day. I feel talking to myself and setting out my goals for the day has really helped me overcome alot of negative mental struggle and nerves during official days. Once I feel ready to play, I will then begin my individual warmup routine, ready for the game.

9. Can you walk us through a typical day in your life as a professional Valorant player?

My typical days vary at the moment due to our schedule within GTZ being different each week. However, on practice days I focus outside of practice hours primarily on my aim routine and any personal lineups/vods I have to do. Other than that, I like spending my freetime after practice with my girlfriend, its nice to have someone to enjoy time with after long days of practice, and she helps keep the mental balance in my life that allows me to maintain motivation to practice and compete every day!

10. What do you think are the key elements to being a successful player in the highly competitive Valorant scene?

I think the main element to success in any competition is discipline. If you dont have the desire to work hard every single day, with or without results to show for it, you wont improve as fast as others and people who want it more will overtake you. I know right now I'm at the level I am, however in my head I know if I really give my all, every single day for the next couple years, I will undoubtedly find success and hopefully reach my dream of playing in VCT.

11. Let's switch to some Quick Questions! Which agent do you prefer for your main role, and why?

My favourite agent is without a doubt Sova! I have so much time and knowledge on him for every single map, and love the fact he allows for creativity with his util where you can try something new every game.

12. What is your favorite weapon loadout in Valorant?

Phantom + sheriff. The phantom because it allows me to spray any smoke I want, and having a sheriff always comes in handy if I need to spam a revealed enemy through a thicker wall.

13. Which map do you feel most confident playing on, and why?

Fracture. Its a map that demands very proactive gameplay, and not very good for just sitting still, which I think is well suited to my strengths as a player. Also, I have alot of knowledge on the map, and have always felt the strongest individually on it.

14. Who is the toughest opponent or team you've faced in the Portuguese league so far?

I think SAW are clearly the strongest team in the league, they have remained consistent and we are yet to beat them. However, with our recent close game against them where we threw alot of rounds away, I am confident to say any team in this league is beatable for us and Im confident we will get our revenge on them soon.

15. How do you stay informed about the latest strategies and meta shifts in Valorant?

Just constantly keeping up to date with all the recent VCT games to see what the best players and teams in the world are doing, I always learn something new when I watch a pro game and try to vod lots when learning a new agent on a map to see what is strong in the current meta. Also just trying stuff out ourselves in scrims, sometimes its more about comfortability than just meta and if we believe something works for us then we will use it.

16. What was one of the most memorable moments in your career while playing for any of your previous teams?

As i said earlier, I would say winning split 2 of VRC Benelux at bootcamp with K10. Being able to share the feeling of victory with my teammates and then celebrate together was the best feeling. We were truly like a family in that team so it felt even better, and I cannot wait for the next time in my career i get to experience that feeling of victory next to my teammates once again.

17. How do you handle the pressure during high-stakes matches, especially in a professional setting? 

Prior to the games starting, I normally take a cold shower and go on a walk and just think to myself to lessen the nerves. I have suffered alot with nerves and too much energy during officials, but in recent times im learning more and more how to deal with this.

18. If you could change one thing about the current state of Valorant, what would it be and why?

I’m genuinely excited to see the outcome of the upcoming duelist changes that were announced, we have been sat in a predominently raze/jett meta for the longest time now, so would be really cool to see agents like neon and potentially reyna seeing more playtime at the top levels.

19. What do you think sets GTZ Esports apart from other teams you've been a part of?

Id say the environment feels alot more professional than any team from my past. My teammates are still brothers to me, however everyone is able to give and receive criticism as professionals, and also our coach knows when to be a friend to us and when to be a coach. This is different to some of my past teams where I think we became too close of friends as a team which led to us being more lenient towards eachother and not always expecting the same level of work and discipline as a professional environment would.

20. Lastly, what advice would you give to aspiring professional players who look up to your career path and success?

My main advice would be to work hard every day and stay disciplined, every day counts and just because you dont have results to show for it, doesnt mean you arent improving. Also, dont burn any bridges, show a good face to everyone you meet because you never know who will be in a position to give you a good opportunity in your future.