YEKINDAR after tough personal period: I know my current level is not enough
In an interview with Pley.gg, Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis talks about going through a challenging time and his goal of becoming a Top 20 player in the world again.
A bumpy start for the new and star-studded Liquid project mixed with a rough period mentally, has taken a toll on the Latvian profile Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis.
Something he acknowledges when speaking with Pley.gg on the media day at ESL Pro League this Monday.
- There have been some personal things inside and outside the game for me, which have mentally broken me in a way. It has made it hard to find the motivation and energy to do things. All these things together with my performance at the RMR kind of fell on me and that was hard - especially after and during the RMR.
- For me personally, it’s been important to regain that individual comfort and confidence. Because when you don’t perform consistently your confidence starts dropping, and that’s something I have tried to address with myself personally. But I feel much happier now, Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis adds.
Hard time finding himself stylistically in the current roster
It takes no expert to see that Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis’ numbers and individual impact have taken a significant hit since his big breakthrough on Virtus.pro. With that being said, there have been standout tournaments for him at Liquid, however, not just in the same capacity as what earned him his stripes in VP.
Taking over the in-game leading role on the North American team and being a more vocal figure surely plays a role in this. During the interview, YEKINDAR also pinpoints other reasons why he has struggled on the server – both at the beginning of his Liquid career but also in the current lineup.
- There are many, many, many small things that collided to make my performance drop. The transition from Virtus.pro to Liquid has definitely not been easy for me, with the CIS perspective and culture being completely different from European and NA, YEKINDAR says and continues:
- For this specific roster, it was also hard to find myself stylistically at the start. Because of my aggressive playstyle, a lot of the time I was too much ahead of the pack, and the space I made was not necessarily needed always. But we have had many, many talks about what the team needs for me, but also about what support I need from the team.
YEKINDAR and the rest of Liquid failed to qualify for the Copenhagen Major earlier this year after a lacklustre RMR event - Photo credit: Michal Konkol and BLAST
“I know that my current level is not enough”
Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis’ individual goal for 2024 is clear. He wants to return to the top. And despite a struggling period, YEKINDAR hasn’t lost faith in himself, he affirms.
- I still believe in myself and I’m still confident about my own abilities. But I know that I can do better and I know that my current level is not enough, and I know that I have to do something about this.
- For me personally, it would be amazing to be a Top 20 player again and to perform the same way as I did in Virtus.pro. Obviously, my goal is to come back to the same level, but a lot of it depends on the consistency of the team as well.
Grinding his way back
When chatting with the 24-year-old rifler, he emphasizes that he’s well aware of what is needed for him to build himself up again both on and off the server. And that is hours in CS. And a lot of them.
- I understand that the thing that’s going to help me is the game itself. I need to play CS as much as possible and that’s what I’m trying to do. Sometimes I wake up at 6 AM because of jetlag and think what am I going to do - am I going for a walk or something else? But I always decide to go and play FACEIT and just grind, so I can say that I have been playing a lot.
Liquid is set to start their ESL Pro League Season 19 campaign on Tuesday this week against FURIA at 19:30 CET. Besides the Brazilian panthers, Liquid is paired with MOUZ, Bad News Kangaroos, Monte, ENCE, GamerLegion and FORZE.
