OG in-game leader Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen has come clean regarding the team's performance and rifler Issa "ISSAA" Murad's issues.
It's been for quite a while now that OG has been entering tournaments as the "dark horses," sometimes dropping out in the finals. Despite a solid roster, the Aleksib-led squad has failed to lose the tag of underdogs. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive fans have a high expectation for this star-studded roster, but the team has maintained a performance below those expectations.
OG's recent showing at IEM Katowice 2021 wasn't much different. The roster entered with all guns blazing, besting giants such as Cloud9 and Fnatic, but it all came to naught in matches against Team Vitality and then FaZe. OG was booted out of IEM Katowice 2021.
In an interview with HLTV, the in-game leader Aleksib shed light on the team's pain point, ISSAA being the focal point of discussion.
The Finnish IGL conceded that the online format had been the leading cause behind the team's slump. Due to region difference, ISSAA has been dealing with a significant ping issue that has negatively impacted his game. According to Aleksib, ISSAA has played the tournaments on 80-90 ping while the team plays at a max of 50. The internet issue has resulted in a major setback for OG's gunner ISSAA, who's displayed some excellent performances at LAN events. While his individual game remained top-notch in IEM Katowice 2021, Aleksib has revealed that ISSAA's issues have led to some critical discussions in OG.
OG's main rifler ISSAA dealing with visa issues
Apart from the internet issue, a new development won't allow ISSAA to join team bootcamp in Lisbon.
"The embassy said that ISSAA can't travel to Lisbon, no matter what. Even if he had the visa right now, he couldn't travel. So we have to think of something else, and that's again having to take a step back, but we'll have to figure something as a team." Aleksib said.
The visa problem implies that it's likely that OG's current matters can't just be resolved with another team bootcamp, as the primary rifle would be unable to join.
The IGL hasn't revealed the organization's next step to remedy ISSAA's issue, but it seems that OG's roster is in need of a change. Soon after the Katowice loss, CSGO analyst and former coach Janko "YNk" Paunović highlighted that OG might want to switch things up in order to level up in the competitive scene.
While no one has directly said that ISSAA needs to go, the problem revealed by Aleksib point towards a potential roster change involving ISSAA. There's no word on how long the online format will last, but visa issues for OG's lurker continue to persist regardless of the format. It remains to be seen how OG tackles these issues to finally get rid of stagnancy within the roster.
