Transcript for:
CoreJJ Discusses Team Liquid's Worlds Journey

Hey guys, this is Ashley Kang of Korizon Esports. And I'm joined by CoreJJ, the Support of TL, After they do defeat PNG and continue their journey in the Swiss Stage of 2024 World Championship. - Hello.

  • Hello. I'm so glad that we're not doing an elimination interview right now. You've just beat PNG, how are you feeling? Before the game, I thought that today's match won't be easy, Since PNG still have potential. But during the games, we often found ourselves in very advantageous positions, So I was like "Oh, this might be easier than I thought." But well, every game's a struggle for us. In what ways do you think you struggled? Well... We weren't exactly well coordinated in teamfights, And I think the way we viewed fights didn't really align. So yeah, that was tough. And while we're on that topic, let me be really honest with you. There are, obviously, certain teamfight angles associated with certain champions and comps, right? But for TL ... I see these angles not really happening with TL. It happened today, and it also happened sometimes in the previous game, especially in late game. But actually, TL was known for being a team with good teamwork back in the LCS regular season. So I'm sure that people will be curious about when you started to feel this 'misalignment'. Well, the LCS teams are very 'slow'. The way they fight, make plans, or make decisions, it's all very slow. So in the LCS, we can take our time to think things over before making a play. But when we play at Worlds, against good teams, We suddenly have to make really quick decisions, and that becomes a vital part of the game. So I think we just got a bit confused while trying to adjust to that. Your previous game was against TES, right? Wait... What was it again? It was WBG. - Oh, it was WBG.
  • Yeah, LNG, then WBG. LNG, WBG, you've definitely met a lot of Chinese teams. I actually interviewed UmTi after the WBG game, And he said, "It's not like we have conflicting shotcalls, it's more like no one's shotcalling at all." And it was a post-match interview, So his thoughts might have changed as you exchanged feedback after the interview ... But I did want to ask you about UmTi's statement. I think that when he said that, he probably meant it like-- When you play against Chinese teams, they're really decisive and quick when it comes to fights. They initiate fights very quickly, and when they do, their teammates also respond swiftly. But on the other hand, for our team, It's not like we're initiating teamfights very suddenly, in split-second windows. It's more like we're... carefully watching the enemy, then reacting to a mistake, or something like that. So I don't think we've been really initiating fights with that much precision. Then ... On the bright side, what do you think are some of TL's strengths? A lot of LCS and LEC experts commented that Yeon was popping off today. Well, after our previous game -- Look, Yeon is actually a really good player. He is the "mechanically gifted" guy in our TL roster, you know. [Laughs] - He's the young blood on your team.
  • Yeah, he's the young blood on the team, At first, he was almost a little intimidated. It felt like he wasn't able to show his full potential. But I think he was finally on a roll today, And the rest of us will have to adjust to his new pace again. TL had been really good-- I mean, everything is relative, but TL has been performing well in the LCS, And you mentioned that at Worlds, TL is now having a hard time adjusting to the Eastern teams and their fast-paced gameplay. Has TL's performance become worse? Or did TL look better because LCS was relatively worse? Well, it is somewhat relative, But I think it's different for every single game we play. For example, we were playing on an even level against both the Chinese teams and the Brazil team, But that doesn't mean that China and Brazil are on the same power level. So I think it's different for every single game, And it all depends on who is more clutch in the crucial in-game moments. Today, I think we were more clutch in the most important teamfights of each game, And against the Chinese teams, I think we weren't. So you're saying that you can perform better in the future? Yeah, and fortunately, our next matchup is looking pretty winnable. Actually, during the draws ... TL player lounge was right there, I could hear TL screaming "WOW! YES!" from here, it was so loud. - [Laughs]
  • It's not like we can't beat the other teams, But ... You know. Meeting enemies in increasing level of power does help us level up. And we're playing Bo3s, so the experience from each and every series counts. So we'll win the next one, and then we're going to beat an Asian team after that. Or, you could draw FLY at that point. - [Laughs]
  • [Laughs] Or, FLY could win their next game. - Yeah, that could happen. Well anything could happen.
  • Yeah, But GAM did eliminate TL last year at Worlds, right? And both teams' rosters are still quite similar to last year. So it does seem like you can't let your guard down against GAM. I watched GAM's series today, and they were definitely good. It's not like every single player is good, but they have some great players, And they've showcased today that they have great potential, As they also did by almost beating FNC last time. And actually, I think GAM and the Western teams aren't really that different in terms of power level. So I guess we'll have to prepare well. Okay, we will definitely support and keep an eye on TL. We have two questions left now. To be frank, after the recent few games, a lot of Western fans have lowered their expectations on TL. I'll be super honest with you, They're saying that your performance is pretty shaky, in wins or losses. Perhaps this is even more glaring now that you're being compared to the Eastern teams. People are going as far as thinking "Is it okay to keep supporting TL?" And -- Look, people get disappointed BECAUSE they believed in you. So CoreJJ, how about a message to those fans? Why should they keep supporting NA. I mean, we could play like absolute garbage in our GAM series, But we're going to win. And against whoever we meet after that, whether we meet an Asian team or not ... We might lose, but I know that we can put up a good performance. And well, you never know how you're going to perform that day until you actually play, But I do think that we have some ideas in store. So I think we can showcase those ideas in-game, against any team we end up facing. Last question, what are the odds that TL make it to the Quarterfinals? I think that in the Swiss Stage, a lot comes down to the draw luck. So I think right now, it's a 50-50. And if we can improve more during the short break we have, I think we can go even further. Okay, we'll believe in you once more. Thank you so much for the interview, hope we see each other again soon! - Thank you.
  • Thank you.