SHFT Boukada: "We are not on the same page"

have struggled to find their rhythm since the start of the LEC Spring Split 2026. The team has endured a very difficult start, recording four losses — the last one on Monday against — and no wins so far. A decisive week now awaits the players, who will travel to Évry-Courcouronnes for the first LEC Roadtrip of the split.

Ahead of what promises to be an important weekend for the team, French jungler spoke with Sheep Esports about the difficulties the roster has faced since the beginning of the season and the challenge that lies ahead.

Mehdi "Boukada" Lahlou: “Disappointment once again. I think that game one was more than winnable. We were really good in the game. We were in winning positions. And game two was more complicated. But I think we managed to hold on, and if I managed to steal the Elder, maybe we steal the game. So a lot of disappointment and frustration.

Boukada: We have different ideas, on several timings. We are not on the same page about how we want to play, whether the fights, where to go, when to go. Against good teams, you get punished immediately and it doesn’t go well. Even if we showed good things in both games, in the end we couldn't make it a victory.

Boukada: Mainly the fact of not being on the same page. Everyone has their own ideas in the games. They're not necessarily bad. But in a team game, if you align yourself to make the same idea, it will always be better than trying to do several things at once. And we have this big problem of not being on the same page on several moves. It costs us skirmishers in early and mid game where we do weird things.

Boukada: I think we’re okay with that. As long as there are matches left, we're here to play. It's our job, we're not going to give up. But of course that when you lose, week after week, while our scrims aren’t even that bad, we show good things potentially in the weeks, without getting better. We arrive on stage, we take game 1, like against where we played a very clean game one. Against and G2, I think it’s the same, we played two good game one but we can't win in the end.

There's always this frustration that we can do something but we can't compete. So in terms of atmosphere and mentality, it's bad, it's even more frustrating than just being stomped. If you get into a game, you're getting smashed in 20 minutes, you’ll say “Well, they're just better, there's nothing to do”. But here, you feel like there's something to do. So in terms of mood, it affects the team.

Boukada: Yeah, I don't have a choice, anyway. We have five best-of-three left. We have the next week in Évry-Courcouronnes. It can always go well. If we get a 3-0 week, it can get us back, it's not impossible. Obviously now, it won't be easy to qualify for the playoffs. I think we can't lose a series anymore, if I'm not mistaken. I’ll give everything and we'll see the result at the end, we'll have to keep working on it, to fix the small problems that we have. And on a good snowball, it's still possible, nothing is impossible even if it seems very complicated.

Boukada: No I think that when you start in 0-4 you can't have any pressure. We played against teams that we thought we could beat. People will expect us to lose because we are 0-4, and last of the league. I think you can put pressure on yourself individually, saying that you need to perform but from the outside, there is no pressure. No one is expecting us to perform, from an external view obviously because in the team we will still try. I think there is no particular pressure to have. We will play relaxed. I hope that we will step up, and play with a better synergy, maybe even remove this pressure.

Boukada: Yeah, totally. I think this kind of event can be really good in terms of team atmosphere if you manage to win. Winning in this kind of LAN, when you travel with your team, with the public, it creates something where you get closer from your team and your teammates, etc. So it's a kind of win that counts double. Between doing a 3-0 week in the studio here in Berlin, or doing it in an IRL event is really not the same for the team. So clearly, it could be a big plus if it's going well for us.

Boukada: No, I think that if you care enough about what people think of you, you won’t go anywhere in life. Honestly, I only focus on myself, on what I do well and bad, how I can do better individually, how I can bring more to the team. What people say or not, I don't really care. It’s been a while since I've stopped using social medias, because I really want to focus on the team 100% and on myself. It's normal that critics are there when a team performs badly, you always have to find who’s responsible. Tomorrow, I know that if we play better and we perform, there won't be any more. So it's something that doesn't impact me and doesn't interest me at all.

Boukada: I wouldn’t go as far as him but obviously it's difficult because when you don’t stop losing, you always wonder “What am I doing wrong?”, you think twice about all your plays. The worst is when you play engage champions like Vi or Jarvan IV. When it goes wrong and you make a play and your team loses, it becomes very difficult to judge what is a good or a bad play and to stay confident. I always try to play even if the plays look bad. I think the worst is when you reach a stage where you don't even dare to play or to engage anymore. I'm a player who prefers to look bad when I engage. I prefer to miss my Q flash, my combo flash, I don’t care, that just being AFK and losing the game.

Boukada: Yeah, I'm curious about the ENC. It’s been a while since people have been talking about it, as it's something they'd like to see. So when I was offered to join the project, I was really enthusiastic and I thought it could be fun and be a great experience.”