Former Fnatic head coach Joey “YoungBuck” Steltenpool has revealed he is joining British esports organization Excel Esports in the head coach position. Fnatic placed 2nd during the 2019 League of Legends European Championship (LEC) Summer Split and is considered a top-tier team. On the other hand, Excel Esports finished 2nd to last during the 2019 Spring Split and dead last during the 2019 Summer Split.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Welcome @JoeyYoungbuck as our new Head Coach 🔥
*pending Riot Games approval*
Read more 👉 https://t.co/yqDmKWPfpx pic.twitter.com/G1OM5El3fo
— EXCEL (@EXCEL) November 14, 2019
Head coach on Excel Esports
“I am very excited to join Excel. As a relatively new organization to the LEC, with many young and talented players, I feel like this is the best place for me to use my experience and ability in regard to developing talent,” said YoungBuck in a statement. “I hope to help Excel grow and become a powerhouse team in the LEC.”
YoungBuck explained that he wanted to stay in the European region because of his familiarity with it. However, he described wanting a challenge as the primary reason for choosing Excel Esports as his next organization in an interview with Red Bull. This is because it would be difficult to build and shape the current roster into a playoff-caliber team. He also describes his new role as a form of “fulfillment” because the players are more desperate to achieve great results.
From dead last to playoffs?
Since Excel Esports ended the 2019 Summer Split in dead last, the players have nothing to lose and only stand to gain. This announcement comes after Excel Esports parted ways with previous head coach David “DLim” Lim and strategic coach Alec “Baby Zeus” Warren to make room for YoungBuck.
“This is an extremely exciting time for us at Excel and I am very proud to be welcoming the six-star general, Joey, to our organization,” said Grant Rousseau, head of operations at Excel Esports. “Unfortunately this means that David and Alec will be parting ways with us. They were valued members of our team and I wish them all the best in whatever comes next.”
With YoungBuck on the roster, he reunites with former G2 Esports top laner Ki “Expect” Dae-han. In addition, Excel Esports have previously won games against Misfits Gaming, Rogue, SK Gaming, and third seed Splyce. With the right work, YoungBuck should be able to bring Excel into the upper half bracket of the 2020 LEC season.
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