Es3tag: "I think what we were lacking was mental fortitude."

FaZe Clan took home the PGL Major Antwerp 2022 trophy yesterday, beating out Natus Vincere in dominant fashion. However, prior to the final, we caught up with Patrick “es3tag” Hansen, who fell to FaZe in the Quarter Finals, and we got his thoughts on NIP’s run at the Major.

Let’s talk about the major, you went out in the Quarter Finals against the now finalists FaZe. Tell me something about your preparation; you just added Brollan recently; what was the preparation like going into this Major? Did you have to change the system? Did you make any adjustments to the roles? You took over the AWP role, for example.

I mean, there were a lot of changes heading into the Major, Brollan coming in, REZ having new roles, Plopski having my roles, and me playing the AWP. So, that’s four different guys who have to get adjusted to stuff, as well as a caller who needs to get to know his team in a new way. So yeah, it’s been a lot of changes, and I think it’s unfortunate we met FaZe in the Quarter Finals because I think we were on fire and able to make it further.

Also, on the coaching staff, you lost an analyst in mahone; how is it panning out so far with the current analyst system you have with THREAT, djL, and Jack?

I think THREAT is doing a great job analyzing and preparation-wise for the team. He has always been known for coming up with gimmicky stuff and watching out for repetitive stuff, and he will come up with a great counter for it. So, he’s doing an absolutely great job. And then djL coming in; I think he has been absolutely vital for us because Swedish teams are by default a lot more solo, a lot more individual. And djL has found a way to make us do everything together and really brought us together as a team and as a unit.

You know you go pee together, you eat together, you sleep together, all that stuff. Of course, to lesser terms, but we do more stuff together, which is nice because we get to know each other, and I think that’s really important when you want to discuss mistakes and stuff within the team. So, he’s done a great job with that.

Now, looking back at your Major run, what was the one thing you were lacking in order to progress further into the playoff stage?

I think towards the end, I think what we were lacking was mental fortitude. I think we had huge chances to beat FaZe in the Inferno game, being up 8-3, and then we just lost 13 rounds in a row. I don’t know if that was the pressure getting to us or what it was, but it felt like we ran out of steam. And, I think it is important for us to look inward and be like, why did that happen and then try and fix that for next time because we had them, we had them where we wanted them.

Last question, you are the only Danish one in the lineup; what is the communication like? Is it still for you, because I imagine you are still talking in Swedish? Is it still hectic in clutch situations and those back and forth situations? Is it hard to communicate or to understand people, or is it just normal at this point?

No, at this point, I am basically Swedish. Like, I feel as if I have been living in Stockholm for the past many months, right? So at this point, I am just Swedish. So, yeah, I speak it, it’s good.

Feature Image via PGL