This Friday,
suffered a 0ā2 defeat in their opening match in Madrid against the hosts of this LEC Roadtrip,
. Already qualified for the
Spring Split playoffs thanks to a four-game winning streak at the start of the regular season, the team has now, however, fallen to three consecutive defeats against the leagueās top contenders.
GX will nonetheless have two more opportunities to reverse the momentum ahead of the playoffs, in matches where they will once again enter as underdogs: against
on Saturday and
on Sunday. That prospect does not appear to intimidate the teamās midlaner,
, who remains confident in his teamās potential.
First of all, whatās your immediate takeaway from todayās games? I guess youāre a bit frustrated right now.
Adam "Jackies" JeÅĆ”bek: āI wouldnāt fully say frustrated. I donāt think I played my best, but at the same time,I didnāt want to come here and play defensively just because we are theoretically the weakest team. So I wanted to come out with some power, and yeah, it backfired. I think in both games ā in the Akali game, I probably could have carried, but in the Azir game, I played a bit too aggressively. I was kind of a free kill in mid. But I wouldnāt say Iām frustrated. I think it was a fine showing. Today they were just better, and thatās it.
You hadnāt played an official match in two weeks before this roadtrip. Did you feel ācoldā coming back on stage today, mechanically or with the crowd?
Jackies: I wouldnāt say so for me personally. I donāt know about the rest of my team, but for me, I felt pretty fine. I even pulled off a TikTok Azir combo Iād never done before, so that was something, so not really.
How did it feel to play on stage today compared to Berlin?
Jackies: I think it actually made me way more aggressive than before, even compared to Berlin. Maybe thatās a positive thing. I mean, last time we played in Madrid, we were last place, I think, and we beat G2. So for me, I like the pressure,and I like playing in Madrid for sure. I guess I just play more aggressively here.
You started the split really well at 4ā0. What do you think changed during these last weeks? Is it stronger opponents, team dynamics, or something else going on in GIANTX?
Jackies: I donāt think anything really bad is happening. Everyone says it, and itās true, that we played weaker teams in the beginning. But at the same time, I think our team atmosphere, team dynamics, and the way we played the game were also really good at the start. Everything was clicking together. And now that weāre facing harder teams, some issues have started showing up. But thatās normal for every team, right? There are ups and downs, and weāre in a down right now. So weāre trying to get back up, and weāre using Madrid as a step for that. Weāll see where it goes.
You now have to recover mentally for tomorrowās matches. Whatās usually the hardest part after a loss like this ā reviewing mistakes or rebuilding confidence?
Jackies: I donāt really⦠I mean, not ācare,ā but I canāt really find the word. Iāll probably just review the games on my own or maybe with Guilhoto (AndrĆ© Guilhoto) and see what happened. Because honestly, I donāt take these games super negatively. Sure, we lost 0ā2, and they ended both games in around 30 minutes. But at the same time, if we win one fight, we probably win the game, right? So it really depends on that. I donāt really go home with a super negative mindset. Iām just ready to stomp G2 tomorrow.
How do you feel about the new patch? A lot changed ā Statikk Shiv is strong again, there are new runes. Do GIANTX feel comfortable on it?
Jackies: I think weāre probably one of the more creative teams. Today, we didnāt really show it because we had zero angles for it, but at least for me, I like the patch for sure. I like it when there are big changes during the split. I feel like it shakes things up a lot. And yeah, Iāve got my spicy stuff ready ā it just didnāt get an angle yet. So hopefully this week we can pull out some of our own stuff.
This roster has played together for a long time now. Do you still believe this roster can peak in playoffs?
Jackies: For sure we can. We all know what weāre capable of. Some players started the split slowly, but at the same time, we all know the potential every single player has. Thatās also a big reason why we didnāt make roster changes ā because we know we have what it takes. Itās just about getting everyone there at the same time. And again, this is something weāre using Madrid for. Itās actually kind of lucky that we already locked playoffs because now we can play with no fear and no pressure at all. I mean, everyone against us is the favorite, right? So itās really about building confidence, even if you lose. For example, I actually liked that the games ended this way ā well, not liked, but⦠even in Game 2, I played Azir into Anivia, but Iām not going to back down just because Iām facing a good player. I know
Joseph Pyun) is really good, but at the same time, I donāt think he was dominating lane the way people expected before. So in a way Iām happy about that, and yeah, weāll just keep it up for the next days.
Lastly, do you have any message for the GIANTX fans who came here to Madrid?
Jackies: Yeah, I think I saw almost every fan, so Iām really grateful for it. I hope theyāre not disappointed after these two days. But I can tell you the aggression wonāt stop ā weāll just keep going.ā