YEKINDAR reflects on his difficult IGL stint in Liquid: “I was a young kid who wanted to win so bad that I couldn’t hold my emotions back.”

YEKINDAR reflects on his difficult IGL stint in Liquid: “I was a young kid who wanted to win so bad that I couldn’t hold my emotions back.”

On the latest episode of HLTV Confirmed, Mareks “⁠YEKINDAR⁠” Gaļinskis addressed his time leading Team Liquid and the personal toll it took, calling himself “a terrible leader” during that period. He admitted:

“I was a young kid who wanted to win so bad that I could not hold my emotions back… when you have young players… you have to be an example for them, and I was definitely not the example that I should have been during that time.” 

YEKINDAR made clear that while he doesn’t consider himself a “bad IGL” inherently — and even jokingly echoed NiKo’s statement that he’d like to lead again — he recognized his shortcomings at the time. 

Career Revival at FURIA: A New Chapter

1. Team Dynamics & AWPer Synergy

Since joining FURIA, YEKINDAR has flourished in a revitalized role, especially in his synergy with AWP talent molodoy. He contrasted molodoy’s selfless, supportive style with his previous AWPer, ultimate, saying:

“With molodoy… his priority is to support his teammates first, then rotate… that’s why everything fell in the right place.” 

2. Surprise and Praise for FalleN

YEKINDAR also praised veteran star FalleN, noting:

“I always spam, '34‑year‑old btw' … the plays he’s pulling off in practice have been far better than what’s shown in officials.” 

3. Rediscovery of Form & Happiness

YEKINDAR’s resurgence with FURIA has been dramatic. In How YEKINDAR is rediscovering his best form with FURIA, he shared:

“Happiness never really left in Liquid… but now it’s multiplied by ten because the team is playing well, I’m playing well and we are winning games.” 

FURIA teammate yuurih even called Mareks “the best thing that has happened to us” as the team secured their first Major playoffs in over two and a half years, with YEKINDAR registering a standout 1.32 rating across stages two and three of the Austin Major. 

Backdrop of the IGL Experiment

Some context from How YEKINDAR is rediscovering his best form with FURIA sheds light on why his IGL tenure was so difficult:

• YEKINDAR became the de facto IGL in summer 2023, replacing veterans nitr0 and EliGE, a move that led to major instability and poor results.

• He admitted it was “a complete failure as a leader,” and that the rapid roster changes that followed only derailed the team's balance further. 

Summary