Aleksib after NAVI’s EWC 2026 elimination: “We were not a team capable of fighting for trophies”

A Poor Start Left NAVI With No Chance of a Comeback

Legacy immediately took control of the series, with NAVI falling behind 2:10 on both maps. Aleksib considers the slow starts to be the main reason for the defeat.

«We just started very slowly. Then we managed to gain momentum on the T side, but Legacy already had too many rounds. We made several crucial mistakes and could not complete the comeback», — said Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen.

On Inferno, NAVI correctly anticipated its opponent’s plans several times but could not convert those reads into round victories. The team even positioned three players on B during the first gun round but still lost it.

n1ssim Prevented NAVI From Recovering on Ancient

The same situation unfolded on the second map. NAVI failed to make its T side work, despite previously considering it one of the team’s strengths at the tournament.

Aleksib named Vinicius “n1ssim” Pereira as one of the main individual factors behind the defeat. The Legacy player won several crucial duels, leaving NAVI with no opportunity to trade him.

«n1ssim played well on Ancient and put us in our place. We could not trade him during important gun rounds where we could have turned the game around», — noted the captain.

However, the captain did not rush to draw conclusions about Legacy’s preparation. According to him, the team first needs to conduct a complete review of the match.

«Right now, I simply think they played better, while we were not the NAVI capable of fighting for trophies», — added Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen.

NAVI Has Almost No Time to Reset

The defeat will not give the team much time to pause. Its next tournament, BLAST Open Fall 2026, begins in less than a week.

According to Aleksib, NAVI practiced actively throughout its stay at the EWC. The team used the time between official matches to work on every map in its pool.

«We practiced every day we were here, trying to stay in shape and improve all our maps. This result is not what we expected, and we are not happy with it. But we still have several tournaments ahead of us, and the next one is already very close. We need to reset and play better», — said the captain.

“We Need to Be Twice as Good”

The captain also believes the team must significantly improve its approach to opening rounds, as falling so far behind against a strong opponent leaves almost no chance of recovery.

«We started slowly on both maps today. Against opponents like this, it is practically impossible to win a game that way. We need to be twice as good, twice as well prepared, keep believing, and continue working», — concluded Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen.