luchov on his performance at the IEM Cologne Major 2026: “It changed a lot because I started off a little nervous.”
Luciano “luchov” Rifler of 9z Team In an interview with OFFSTAGE, Herrera shared his thoughts after advancing to the playoffs of the IEM Cologne Major 2026, discussed the pressure in decisive matches, and explained the importance of communication within the team.
On advancing to the playoffs
The emotion I’m feeling right now is happiness, because the way we did it was really great and at the same time tough, and I think that’s why I’m so happy.
On the playoff qualifier match
After the last game, things were calmer—it was like, “We did it.” I think we were relaxed; I don’t know. I didn’t know what to do at that moment.
On the pressure in decisive matches
We handled it very well. Emotionally, the game against Aurora Gaming was tougher—both emotionally and mentally—and I think we handled it well. We said we came here to make the playoffs, and I think that worked in our favor—we played that match very calmly.
On my performance throughout the tournament
It changed a lot because I started out feeling a little nervous and anxious about the tournament, but as the matches went on, I started to feel calmer and tried to enjoy myself.
On the importance of communication
Communication is the most important thing, because when we all talk throughout every round, during free time, and use pauses effectively—the team performs much better than when we don’t.
At the recent IEM Cologne Major 2026, 9z Team lost to FURIA in the quarterfinals with a 1–2 map score. Luciano “luchov” Herrera’s team finished in 5th–8th place at the championship, earning $45,000 in prize money.
Photo: PGL.
