It’s all kicking off! After battling out in the semifinals of ELEAGUE, it looks like there’s a new CS:GO rivalry: NaVi s1mple vs NAF of Team Liquid.
Team Liquid (ranked #4) managed to beat NaVi (#2) 2-0 in a Bo3 map series. Since then, star players NAF and s1mple have exchanged some choice words.
NAF to s1mple: “I don’t see s1mple as the star-studded player.”
S1mple has been hailed as the best CS:GO player of 2018 by many players and analysts. Keith ‘NAF’ Markovic, however, doesn’t believe the hype.
In an interview with HLTV.org, NAF said:
“To me, I don’t see s1mple as the star-studded player. He was just in the middle of the pack, not making any insane plays in this best-of-three, just like he had not in the best-of-three at EPL. I don’t remember him doing that much, although he still had good stats and everything.”
Incredible pistol round clutch from @NAFFLY to start of the second half of map 1 for @TeamLiquid pic.twitter.com/gcKB0mUbnm
— ELEAGUE (@ELEAGUETV) July 28, 2018
The comments were more based around his team’s performance in shutting NaVi down. Still, s1mple didn’t take to the comments too kindly.
S1mple responds: “After the words of NAF, I’ll prepare for this game like never before.”
After catching word of NAF’s interview, Aleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev responded on Russian social network VK.com.
His comment to fans roughly translates to:
“Team Liquid, on American soil, has a unique aura that makes my team and I perform worse than our real capabilities. But we will remove this curse the next time we meet. And after the words of NAF, I will prepare for this game like never before. I will train hard to destroy this team.”
.@s1mpleO almost gets the ace clutch! pic.twitter.com/tlLhcaoKHM
— ELEAGUE (@ELEAGUETV) July 28, 2018
Chances are you’ll be seeing plenty of hours of practice on s1mple’s Twitch channel.
CS:GO s1mple vs NAF – Head to Head
In both the EPL Season 7 Finals and ELEAGUE Premier 2018, Team Liquid knocked out NaVi in the semifinals. They also went on to lose to Astralis in the grand finals in both events.
NaVi may have lost their last two games against Liquid but s1mple still stands ahead, having a 2018 rating of 1.34 on LAN.
NAF is no slouch himself, boasting a 1.18 rating at Big Events in 2018. He also outperformed s1mple at ELEAGUE. He’s arguably the best NA CS:GO player currently.
HLTV.org ELEAGUE Premier 2018 Stats
The teams won’t get a chance to face off again until the FACEIT London Major. With a competitive feud brewing and a vow by s1mple to destroy Liquid, the next matchup is set to be a banger.