The importance of Team Liquid PH’s coaches and the need to nerf Pakito—highlights from the 8G podcast with Midnight and Reptar

Aurora Gaming coach Midnight, Neil “Midnight” De Guzman, and commentator Remnar “Reptar” Santa Cruz appeared on the latest episode of the 8G podcast on the Wolf Casts YouTube channel. Here’s a quick rundown of the highlights in our article.

Midnight stated that, despite the high prestige of the Grand Finals, he highly values the early days of the playoffs. According to the coach, it is at the very beginning of the stage that the audience’s mood is set and the groundwork is laid for the drama that helps keep the audience engaged. Reptar agreed with this assessment and added that the third day is equally important.

The casters also discussed esports players who had demonstrated an improvement in their gameplay compared to the previous competitive season. Remnar was impressed by the performances of Jeymz and Nets from Omega Esports, while Neil praised Team Falcons PH’s jungler Kyle, who, according to De Guzman, failed to live up to expectations in Season 16 but played exceptionally well during MPL Philippines Season 17.

Santa Cruz enjoyed the final match of the recent Philippine tournament. The commentator noted that both Team Liquid PH and Team Falcons PH are strong in their own ways and performed admirably in the Grand Final. Remnar admitted that he doesn’t always understand the “Falcons’” strategies and playstyle, but expressed confidence that if the team continues to work hard, it will undoubtedly become one of the best in the region.

The state of the hero Pakito is a concern for the Aurora Gaming coach. Neil believes that the character is too strong in the current meta and exerts an excessive influence on the map, disrupting established strategies and interactions between players. Remnar supported his colleague and added that the buff Pakito received has reduced his reliance on combat spells, some of which are crucial for certain explainers—such as “Stun” for Benedetta.

Both Reptar and Midnight are convinced that Team Liquid PH’s coaching duo—Aeon and SN4P—works hard and with great dedication, which is why the team keeps winning one tournament after another. The team’s players told commentators that the coaches process a huge amount of information and prepare thoroughly for practice sessions, which makes the esports athletes feel incredibly confident and allows them to focus directly on their performances.

De Guzman has genuine respect for the “Liquid” managers. Neil admires how the club managed to weather the storm in early 2026, when goldlaner Oheb decided to leave the team. The management tried out numerous candidates and ultimately settled on Teddyqt, who had come up through the academy roster. Midnight speculated that even Team Liquid PH itself likely didn’t expect the players to adapt so quickly to the changes and start winning trophies immediately after their mid-season transfers.

In the previous episode of 8G, Team Falcons PH assistant coach Mohammad “Coach Moody” Samal discussed the need to introduce global bans in the MPL and shared his insights on how to become one of the best players in any esports discipline.

Photo: Neil “Midnight” De Guzman.