Kazakhstani organization K23 has announced 18-year-old Russian prospect Kirill ‘Magnojez’ Rodnov as a new player, filling the space left by Sanzhar ‘def1zer’ Talgat, who was removed in December.
This signing completes K23’s roster for the new season. After a failed campaign at the European RMR for IEM Rio, where the team led by Vladislav ‘FinigaN’ Usov failed to make the Major after losing to BIG in the decisive 2-2 match, the organization unveiled former Nemiga duo Rassim ‘Jyo’ Valijev and Artem ‘iDISBALANCE’ Egorov. K23 hoped to achieve consistency in the lower tiers through these changes, but Daniil ‘X5G7V’ Maryshev’s leadership has yielded mediocre results so far.
Magnojez is known for his time in Websterz, where he played in a range of qualifiers and online cups. However, in the last months of 2022, the youngster was also seen standing in for forZe, as Andrey ‘Jerry’ Mekhryakov’s team trialed multiple players for their new roster. Magnojez also recently triumphed in PARI After Rio LAN and FASTCUP Grand Tour Season 2, playing in a mix team alongside new Outsiders recruit Aleksandr ‘KaiR0N-‘ Anashkin and former Entropiq star Aleksei ‘El1an’ Gusev.
The new roster will debut at ESL Challenger League, whose 44th season is due to start on January 17.
K23’s completed roster for 2023 is:
- Daniil ‘X5G7V’ Maryshev
- Konstantin ‘Raijin’ Trubarov
- Rassim ‘Jyo’ Valijev
- Artem ‘iDISBALANCE’ Egorov
- Kirill ‘Magnojez’ Rodnov
Image credit: Helena Kristiansson / ESL
