MKOI Melzhet on Jojopyun: "He's the most talented player I ever coached"

With only a few hours to go before the start of the LEC 2026 Summer Finals weekend, the tension is filling the air in Nice. Only one spot at Worlds 2026 remains, with two teams fighting for it. On one side are the veterans of , looking to secure their place at the international event, while on the other are the newcomers and underdogs of , hoping to dethrone the established order and prove themselves on the biggest stage of their year.

In an exclusive interview, MKOI head coach Tomás "Melzhet" Campelos Fernández sat down with Sheep Esports to discuss the upcoming make-or-break match, his team’s struggles throughout the split, and how the coaching staff has worked to address their tendency to lose composure in-game. He also reflects on his approach to coaching throughout the year, MKOI’s young Academy talent, and the future of .

Tomás "Melzhet" Campelos Fernández: “Nothing particular, just focusing day by day. Trying to survive, more than anything. I still have a lot of emotion to process. We’re just working, working, working, and being as well prepared as we can.

Melzhet: I think the mood is good. We know what we need to improve now. And we are really confident. Now it's time to see if it shows on stage.

Melzhet: Mostly some decisions that we are taking at certain times of the game. And being a bit more structured.

Melzhet: We went through a lot of emotions, and our mindset was not right in the right place. That was our biggest problem—we are a team that is really emotional. Everybody already knows that. We were often in good positions, but we were throwing a lot of games. If we didn't throw a lot of games, we would be talking about a different season.

Melzhet: No, I don't think the relations between players were problematic. It's more in-game. There are moments that you need to play out, and when you're not calm, you tend to make weird decisions or not process the information that you have on the map. So yeah, those were more the problems, not between the players or anything.

Melzhet: I mean, it's fucking hard. I'm not going to lie. [laughs]

We did some research with the whole staff on our situation—it's common in other sports. There's a lot of studies about NBA or NFL or university sports. We needed to find out something that applies to League of Legends. Because usually those problems are tackled by changing players in the middle of the game or making a break or a pause. Or you give indications to the players.

This is something that you cannot do in League, sadly. So we kind of found out a way to replicate. But it's still not 100% accurate. So we're still improving on that. I mean, I take those things as a challenge. So I really like it. But of course, at some points, you also miss some advantages that you have in other sports to actually apply here.

Melzhet: Yes and no. I think you need to do different things. It depends on the timing of the season and the moments that you are. Because, again, you have only five players. You need to make them work together. So I think it was a quite interesting year for me. Without being able to talk about everything still, I think it was a really good year for me.

Melzhet: I always appreciate when my boss gives me his trust. But I don’t want to overthink this. Of course, if my job at some point is not good enough, they are going to kick me, regardless of what he said. If my work is not showing or I'm not putting in the effort or whatever, I'm going to get kicked. And that's pretty normal. I don't care too much. I try to always do my best and try to have zero regrets. So that's my focus.

Melzhet: Honestly, I haven't thought about it. I talk with my director about what I think are the moves we need to do. But after that, I fully trust him. MKOI is a great club, and no matter what changes happen in the players or in the coaching staff, I think they are going to still be a great club.

The main focus will be to create the best possible outcome. But there are many, many, many, and you will never know. We always have options.

Melzhet: I think he's the most talented player I ever coached. And probably he will remain at the top always. But I think he still needs to grow up and mature a lot, and not only gameplay.

Looking at gameplay, though, he still does a lot of mistakes that he shouldn't be doing for a player of his caliber. But he has an amazing potential. And I hope that no matter what, if he stays or he leaves, he keeps working on that. It’s exciting to have a player like him in Europe.

Melzhet: I'm confident. Against Vitality, it was the same issue as the entire year: our gameplay isn’t necessarily bad, but there are moments where we aren’t calm enough. For example, the moment we engage in the third game on the mid wave. We told our players not to run into them, and have Vitality run into us instead, but we still end up doing the mistake anyway. We are saying one thing, and we do the opposite. We feel rushed to do things that we don’t need to do. We need to just be calm and finish games in a more chill manner. We can win those 100%.

Melzhet: I'm confident too. I'm confident that we can win against anyone. I'm more scared of my own team, honestly. I think as long as you are competing, you can turn things around, always.

Melzhet: I think they have an amazing potential for sure. They proved it. And now they still have this competition in Korea, WSCI, and also they have the EMEA Masters. I think they have a big opportunity to show how good they are. We scrimmed with them, we did a lot of things with them, and they have a really great potential. But of course, a lot of them are still very young, so they still have a lot to learn. But I think they're going to be the future, yeah.

Melzhet: No, I don't think so. I mean, I spend the most time with Slayer, of course, because he was here in Berlin. But I coached for Fresskowy for many years too, so yeah, but I like them. I like them a lot.

Melzhet: I think if we are confident and we are calm, and we really believe that we can achieve, we are going to win the whole thing.”