flashie: "JT sees the game very similarly to me, so that guidance is now there. It wasn't really possible to get to that point [before]"

Liquid hit the ground running at IEM Beijing with a resounding 2-0 victory over Aurora, getting revenge over Damjan "⁠kyxsan⁠" Stoilkovski's troops a week after losing to them in the group stage of PGL Masters.

"The first time when we played them in Bucharest, we felt like we really should have won," Viktor "⁠flashie⁠" Tamás Bea told HLTV after the series. "Today we were less nervous, and we finished the job."

The Hungarian coach also shared insight into his development as a coach and how the team has progressed with Johnny "⁠JT⁠" Theodosiou and Georgi "⁠Jorko⁠" Mitev. stating that the young sniper has potential that will take some time to realize.

"Jorko is very, very talented mechanically," he said. "I would say that he's very young, obviously, and we can feel that sometimes on the server. His focus and just keeping it cool need to improve a little bit.

"But besides that, he's trying his best constantly to get advice from us and trying to get the experience from the veterans we have in Jon [EliGE] and Keith [NAF] to improve."

Listen to the interview here.

A dominant win to start off your run in Beijing, and a bit of revenge over Aurora after Bucharest as well. Just tell me what's going through your mind after that win.

First of all, I'm happy that we managed to win in such a convincing fashion. I think it will be good for our confidence for the later games. Obviously, in the last few months, we didn't face a lot of tier-one teams besides Bucharest, so now in the last two weeks, it's kind of new to us in a way. We are easing into it. The first time when we played them in Bucharest, we felt like we really should have won. Today we were less nervous, and we finished the job.

What do you think led to being less nervous this time around? Is it just that you've gotten that experience in Bucharest now?

Our expectations were kind of low in Bucharest, but as we played well and we beat MOUZ in the first game, our expectations got higher and higher because we played well. So when expectations get higher and higher, it's harder to play with calmness and to push it through the finish line.

But we had a lot of good discussions since Bucharest that helped us not feel nervous today, or feel less nervous. Obviously, it's hard to keep it consistent and hard to keep it calm all the time, but today we did a good job of it.

In Bucharest we had issues closing the rounds and had tons of advantages, and that was also a focus point for us coming into this event.

EliGE also talked to us in Bucharest about some of these conversations that you are having to work through in your development cycle. Can you give me some more insight into your role in that and how you work through some of these things with the team?

We are constantly problem-fixing on the server. We are trying to create more protocols. We are trying to make agreements about specific scenarios that we might face again, and it's all about becoming a unit more or less.

Because when we don't play well, for example, the previous events before Bucharest, we played some tier-two events, and we didn't play well at all. It's because we didn't have good communication, the basics were missing. Whether that is because we didn't play officials for a while or because we just didn't have enough effort going into the game, I'm not sure. But we are making sure both are on the right path now.

It's interesting to hear you say that, because when I was talking to m0NESY yesterday, he even said Falcons are focusing on the basics, and a few other teams have also said in interviews that they're going back to focusing on the basics. Why do you think this is such a common sentiment now among teams?

I think the basics are easy to overlook, and at times people take them for granted. But playing well fundamentally is not granted. You need to work for it every single day and every single match you have. You need to go into it knowing that you playing well is not a given. You need to fight for it. You need to take it. You need to be hungry for actually playing well. And that's how we approach it.

Why do you think this has become such a topic now, though?

I'm not sure, actually. Maybe because recently a lot of top teams have been struggling, I think that's why it's like a hot topic in a way. But for us, it has been the topic since we made the changes in the summer, and we are trying to improve on it. And step by step, we are making improvements.

Talk to me about those changes, because the last time we talked to you was back when you still had siuhy and ultimate. How have those changes unfolded from your perspective, and how has the team developed since then?

First and foremost, in the previous lineup, we had a lot of... I wouldn't say disagreement, but we were just not on the same page. And it was really hard to work together as a whole because we had six different ideas, basically, about how to play the game, how to come into the game and try to win the games.

I feel like the biggest difference with this team is that we are all on the same page pretty much all the time. Obviously, there can be some exceptions, but I think the biggest difference is that Johnny, JT, sees the game very similarly to me. So us being on the same page is helping us to put the whole team on the same page with us. So that guidance is now there. That was not there before because it was not really possible to get to that point.

When you say that you and JT are on the same page, can you expand on that, what that means for you and for him?

I would say that it starts with the basics, fundamentals on how to win advantageous rounds, how to approach disadvantages, how to approach prep, just all the aspects of becoming a team and playing an official game. We just see eye to eye, and we are just having fun working together, and I enjoy the process, and we can always just improve step by step, and that's a process that I can enjoy.

Can you also talk to me about Jorko's development? He's been in the team for a little bit now. Numbers-wise, obviously a little bit of room to grow still, but how has he been coming along in the team?

Jorko is very, very talented mechanically. I would say that he's very young, obviously, and we can feel that sometimes on the server. His focus and just keeping it cool need to improve a little bit. But besides that, he's trying his best constantly to get advice from us and trying to get the experience from the veterans we have in Jon [EliGE] and Keith [NAF] to improve.

I would say that he just needs time, because all these things that he's lacking are kind of the basics that we talked about in the beginning, and that takes time to actually nail in.

And then lastly, I wanted to ask about your own development as a coach. You came into the role [a year and a half ago], so how have you felt yourself develop through that time, and how has the role changed for you?

I would say it's been a big process for me because I was working in NAVI alongside B1ad3, so I see how his coaching style is. And coming into Liquid, I knew that my coaching style would be different because we are just different people; we are different professionals.

But the biggest thing for me is finding my style of coaching, because the different players you have, the different coaching style, your coaching style needs to be adjusted for two different players and their needs. Some players demand more, some players demand less, some players you need to leave alone a little bit, some players you need to put your hands on, and it took me some time to figure out how to handle some players.

But especially in the last three months, I had great improvement, and I just basically focus on development constantly, and I just want to be better and better as time goes on.

What would you say your style is now?

I would say I'm a strategic coach who is trying to mix in some emotional support also, in a way. I would say that I'm pretty balanced, but I would say I'm still on the strategic side. That's the style.

Viktor 'flashie' Tamás Bea

Liquid

Keith 'NAF' Markovic

Jonathan 'EliGE' Jablonowski

Mario 'malbsMd' Samayoa

Johnny 'JT' Theodosiou

Georgi 'Jorko' Mitev

Viktor 'flashie' Tamás Bea

Georgi 'Jorko' MitevPast 3 months

Aurora

Ismailcan 'XANTARES' Dörtkardeş

Özgür 'woxic' Eker

Jimi 'Jimpphat' Salo

Damjan 'kyxsan' Stoilkovski

Ali 'Wicadia' Haydar Yalçın

Ashley 'ash' Battye

Damjan 'kyxsan' StoilkovskiPast 3 months

Johnny 'JT' TheodosiouPast 3 months