ZywOo Admits Vitality Lacks Confidence, But Believes Bounce-Back Is Coming
Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, star AWPer for Team Vitality, acknowledged a noticeable drop in his squad's confidence following a disappointing run at the Esports World Cup 2025 (EWC), where they finished in fourth place after consecutive losses.
Where Did It Go Wrong?
Reflecting on their bleak 13‑4 defeat on Train against Falcons, ZywOo pinpointed a complete breakdown across all facets of play:
“When we are losing 13‑4 on Train, everything went wrong on our side. The communication, the teamplay, individually, nothing went good on our side. It's almost everything.”
Their previous dominance, which included a staggering streak of seven tournament victories in the first half of 2025—including a Major title at BLAST Austin—now feels distant as the team struggles to replicate that peak form.
Confidence and Energy Dropping
ZywOo admitted that hesitation has crept into their gameplay:
“Sometimes maybe we hesitate too much... We are not confident about the peek… we are not confident about a lot of things right now.”
He also mentioned that illness and fatigue, both personally and within the team, have impacted their energy and performance:
“I think it affected me a bit, but mostly the team... even flameZ was a bit… more tired than usual… when you are not as five, it is tougher to put in the same energy.”
The weight of expectations also looms large: having dominated earlier in the year, repetition of that success now feels more challenging.
Ropz Confirms: “Not Playing Like We Used To”
A complementary perspective comes from Robin “ropz” Kool, who after a 2–0 loss to The MongolZ at BLAST Bounty Season 2 Finals—just before EWC—admitted:
“We’re not playing like we used to... We just need to step up in terms of everything. Even when we’re not on our A‑game, we need to find ways to bounce back. Right now, that’s not happening.”
He criticized recurring small mistakes and lack of sharpness, calling the matches a red flag.
How Vitality Plans to Reset
Despite the slump, ZywOo remains optimistic:
“I have no doubt that this team is going to work again, work as we did in the first half of the year. We're going to come back stronger.”
He emphasized the importance of an open internal dialogue:
“The first thing is we're going to have a good talk about what went wrong, what we need to bring into the server again.”
He concluded with a note of reaffirmed belief:
“We still believe in the team, we still believe we can come back stronger, and we're going to get back on the top.”
In summary, while Vitality's earlier successes made their current slump all the more surprising, the squad remains united and determined to rediscover their dominant form. Let me know if you’d like quotes from other players such as apEX or insights on rivals like Falcons or The MongolZ!
