GX Attila: "People underestimate us. [...] They forget we are by far the team with the most Superliga titles"

Sheep Esports recently had the opportunity of interviewing Amadeu "Attila" Dias de Carvalho. Throughout the interview, we not only understand the reasons behind the return of the Portuguese player to GIANTX iTero, but also talk about the situation of the ERLs, the character of new project he is enrolling into, as well as his recent roleswap to support, and his relationship with Victor "Flakked" Lirola and Antonio "Th3Antonio" Espinosa.

Amadeu "Attila" Dias de Carvalho: "It's too soon to know how I feel about the project. It sort of came out of the blue. The idea had been on our minds for some time, but the project came along very quickly, just over the course of a week. We all got together, talked about our goals, what we wanted to do with this type of project — since it's a very special project, we all care deeply about. In general, I've never had any problems with GIANTX or Giants in the past. That's why, in the end, you always end up where you've been happy before. At least that's my opinion. Besides, I can't really complain about how we have been treated so far and the conditions they've offered us, especially considering the situation of the upcoming league.

Attila: You could say that, yes. Antonio had wanted to do this for a long time. We had discussed it before, and we had been competing together for a long time. In addition, last year we were able to enjoy the Los Ratones project. It was an incredible project, I think it revolutionised the ERLs. It was very positive in all aspects. It wasn't just an eye-catching project; it's a project that has evolved and is a winning project. So, I think it has inspired not only our team; in fact, there are quite a few teams that have similar projects, and I think it's the future of the ERLs. It might even be the future of the LEC, I don't know to what extent it will change things. But it is the type of project that really gets the fans involved. You can see how hard the players are working, what they are doing. You really connect much more with the team by doing this than if you just occasionally appear on social media. That's why this is a really exciting project, and I genuinely think it'll be the future of ERLs.

Attila: It's definitely one of the multiple factors. The talent in Europe is currently quite stagnant. There is indeed a kind of "meta" in the LEC that consists of switching between signing rookies, veterans, and Korean imports. At the end of the day, all organizations have winning in mind. Also, in my opinion — without holding a grudge against Riot — I think Riot has done a poor job of not caring more about the ERLs. I don't think they're in good shape right now, nor do I think they will be for some time. This is due, for example, to the format of the EMEA Masters, which has been pretty bad for some time. Teams will invest if you give them reasons to invest, and in this case, I don't think they've been given many reasons to. There are some leagues, such as the LFL, where they have been able to take advantage of the situation and are constantly evolving. But apart from that, the Superliga has been in a very bad shape for quite some time. In the German League, a team of streamers emerged that won and then had a lot of dramas... Maybe we all sare a bit of fault.

Attila: Well, it's funny, because we've had very few public scrims so far. There have been literally three blocks and, if I'm not mistaken, about ten public matches. For now, it's cool, I'm really enjoying them, I have no complaints because it's something that motivates me a lot. It's extra motivation. I don't care if I'm having a bad day or if I'm not in the best mood; we're still human and we're going to give it our best shot. On our first day, we had more than 10,000 people watching us. You don't want to look bad in front of 10,000 people. Another aspect that I really like about this type of format is the responsibility. You are responsible for your actions. Without going any further, out of the three days we have trained so far, on all three the teams arrived late. If you really want to understand the problem in Europe, or even delve deeper into the problem of ERLs, generating talent and so on, all of this adds.

I would add that two of the three days scrims have been cancelled. This also happens a lot. It is impossible to generate talent and for the most novice players to continue to evolve and increase their level if you train little and poorly. Other regions that have been dominating the scene for I don't know how long, play more and have better quality training. One of the most positive things is to make people accountable and see who is to blame for, for example, poor quality training, people not trying hard enough... I would even like to see this in LEC teams. If people had more access to the training sessions of the best players in Europe, the region would probably rise to a higher level.

Attila: Well, it really took me by surprise. Last year, I wasn't really looking for any offers. I didn't post anything, nor did I talk to any teams internally. I was just playing SoloQ to keep my level up, and I got offers as an ADC, coach, and support — without me asking for anything. So, the best offer, and the one that was the most interesting, was from GIANTX. I got several offers and turned them down; I didn't want a "ZETA 2.0". I didn't want to be on a team where people weren't motivated and would all quit at the end of the season. And then they told me they needed a support for this project. Since I wasn't competing on any team and playing ADC in SoloQ is a horrible experience... Out of nowhere, I found myself with several accounts with 1200 LPs or more playing support. And one thing led to another.

Attila: The good thing about having played ADC is that I studied my rivals a lot. Not only do I have the information I've gathered over the years about what he was like as a player, but now I know exactly what he wants, because we think exactly the same way. I know very well how the brain of an ADC works. There are many things he doesn't need to tell me, because I already know what he needs. So far, it's been interesting, but we still have to agree on some points. Since I've started playing a new role and with the latest meta changes, we don't know yet what will be strong and what won't. For now, I'm just trying to adapt as best I can, playing and expanding my champion pool. Although that's not really a problem, because when I was an ADC, I was one of the first in Europe to play mages, for example, and I really enjoyed innovating. It's an adventure. I'm going like a tortoise; slowly but surely.

Attila: For me, anything less than winning is a tragedy, to be completely honest. People underestimate us quite a bit and have doubts. I don't blame them. I don't even know what my competitive support level is, as I've never played as a support before. The same applies to Antonio's case. But I think people are forgetting that I don't care who our opponents are; we are by far the team with the most Superliga titles, and we are going to keep winning. There's something that can't be taught, the champion's pedigree, and there are very good players who aren't able to take that extra step when playing in playoffs or important matches. In our team, if there's one thing we have plenty of, it's people who have won back and back again. We have players who, when it comes down to the real deal, can show what they are capable of, like Flakked, who comes from the LEC, or Antonio, who last competed in the LEC, or Miniduke (Ismael Cortés), who was an Uber driver and left that job to be part of this project, and Manolo (Manuel "ManoloGap" Garcia), who has never had the chance of competing on first division... It's a project where we are all hungry to win. It's not a project to just make a little content and that's it. It's not ZETA's project, this is a real project that not only seeks to entertain, but also to win and be successful in both areas.

Attila: I think that, especially given the current circumstances, there are several ways to get into the LEC. For example, I could get into the LEC as a coach. Many people have told me that I'm a player with a lot of knowledge because I've competed for so long. Many of my former teammates are in the LEC as staff, so I could easily be there too. I think the best coaches from now on are all going to be former players. Because not only does it help a lot to know how a player feels when you're on the fifth map, and you're in the final fight that's going to decide everything, it also helps a lot to know what it's like to play twelve hours a day for three months because all you want is to win that championship. Regarding that, I could easily be there and, honestly, given what I've seen, I'm going to work hard this year as it's a very new project for me. I'm really enjoying this new role. It gives me a lot of freedom, I can be quite creative. And in Europe, the level is quite low.

So I wouldn't rule it out. Jun (Yoon Se-jun) is going into military service next year... if we win the EMEA Masters this year, technically they have to promote us anyway... One can get excited. I would be one of the most veteran players. It would be fun to say, "Hey, I snuck in here at 30 years old." On top of that, I don't want to be in the LEC just to play, but to compete and try to win. It would be very interesting. I'm not ruling it out. I've always said that I'm going to play until I have the level and the motivation to do so. So, if those two things continue being true, I'm going to keep playing, and I'm going to keep competing to aim for the highest possible level. If one of those two things fails—when my hands give out or when I lose my motivation—I'll hang up my headset and leave, but that's a problem for my future self.

The usual. They must be pretty fed up with me by now. Between Antonio and I, we have almost 20 years of experience between us. So, nothing really, just stay tuned, because the project looks promising. I think it's a project that you can get excited about. We're not just five friends who got together to have fun. No, we're going to have fun and we're going to have success. That's the main goal. What's more, we have a LEC team that's a huge project, and we have access to watch their scrims and consult a little with their coaching staff, which also greatly increases our individual level if we know how to take advantage of that opportunity. Personally, I believe that this year we're going to give you a lot of love and a lot of joy. We're going to make the league entertaining, no matter what. Especially if we make it to the finals, so people can see our POV, and if there's a live event, even better. It's going to be really nice. Looking back, and I wish I had recorded my POV while I was screaming like a orangutan when playing against RNG or Gen.G at the Worlds."