Aleksib on Natus Vincere: “We continue to believe in ourselves and understand that we are capable of playing much better.”
Natus Vincere CS2 captain Aleksib Virolainen, shared his thoughts in an interview at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 following the team’s loss to Team Spirit in their first match of the event’s third stage, spoke about his confidence, and addressed the club’s fans.
On his feelings after the loss in the opening match of the third stage
The most obvious thing we realized after losing to Team Spirit is that we weren’t ourselves in that match. There was something preventing us from simply moving around the map normally and playing our game. We kept losing one numerical advantage situation after another—situations that, on paper, we should always be able to take. When that happens several times in a row, you immediately start doubting your ability to win even a single round. We prepared a lot, but in the end, we lost the first map 1-13. This means we need to work on our mistakes and realize that this stage of the event won’t be easy. We’re not in the best form right now. Historically, we’ve always had a tough time against Spirit, but we still need to get stronger—that’s all.
On self-confidence in the wake of crushing defeats
Of course, defeats like this really take a toll on the team’s confidence, but we understand that we still have three chances left. Right now, it’s just us against ourselves. We need to clearly identify where we went wrong and admit that we failed to live up to our own expectations. I don’t want to take anything away from Spirit’s performance, but at the same time, it felt like we weren’t even on the server. Today has to be different if we want to achieve anything in this tournament.
On the event’s slow start and fan support
The tournament is just beginning. Sometimes the start is slow. For example, when we won the Major in Copenhagen, our path in the third stage wasn’t easy either. Anything can happen, but we continue to believe in ourselves and know we’re capable of playing much better, so please believe in us too.
Today, Natus Vincere defeated The MongolZ in a third-round match at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 Stage 3 with a score of 2-1 in a best-of-3 series. Tomorrow, Aleksib Virolainen’s team will get its first chance to advance to the event’s playoffs.
Photo — João Ferreira, PGL.
