flameZ on the first match at the IEM Cologne Major: “We played a little worse than usual.”
Team Vitality rifler Shahar “flameZ” Shushan shared his thoughts in an interview at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 following their victory over FUT Esports.
On the match against FUT Esports
Obviously, we played a little worse than usual, since we hadn’t played official matches in a long time. We played well, and they played great too. However, we lost a lot of entry duels, after which it was difficult to make a comeback in 4v5 or 3v5 situations in several rounds.
On playing on Nuke
In my opinion, it’s difficult to play on the attack on Nuke. When we play, we try to succeed in every round, to even the odds, even if it’s an eco. ...> Dan’s last few calls were good, so the situations turned in our favor. But they [FUT Esports. — Ed.] push a lot, so it’s interesting to play CS against them because you’re expecting a response.
Earlier, Team Vitality defeated FUT Esports in a first-round match at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 Stage 3. On Anubis, Dan “apEX” Madeskler’s team lost 5-13, but secured confident victories on Overpass (13-2) and Nuke (13-8). As a result, the “Bees” moved into the lower bracket with a 1-0 record, while FUT Esports now has one loss.
Photo — Stephanie Lindgren, BLAST.
