Number 11 on our top 20 of 2018 list, powered by EGB.com, is Ladislav "⁠GuardiaN⁠" Kovács, who posted this year's highest numbers with the AWP and maintains his status as an ever-present figure in the top 20 rankings since CS:GO's release.

GuardiaN started his CS:GO career playing for some local teams, myDGB.net and 3DMAX—where he played with oskar, this year's No.14 in the top 20 ranking. He competed at some international events with those teams, such as Mad Catz Viena and Copenhagen Games, but the Slovakian AWPer would quickly outgrow the local scene and search for something more.

“I would say we had a great time and some great results for a Slovak and Czech team, so it was a great experience and a good start for our careers. We attended some international events, where we gained experience about the world scene and thanks to that we got where we are nowadays.

"Our expectations were not high, I think we were humble and happy to be able to play against top teams, as in CS 1.6 it was almost impossible for us to do so. I would say we were really grateful and motivated to compete with the best back then. As time passed we both wanted to achieve something bigger and we were lucky enough to get offers from European teams.”

GuardiaN played a few tournaments and qualifiers with TCM-Gaming, a mix-team that also had Richard "⁠shox⁠" Papillon on board, before moving on to Virtus.pro, where he played alongside Kirill "⁠ANGE1⁠" Karasiow and Mihail "⁠Dosia⁠" Stolyarov. After a few top-four finishes, however, the team disbanded as some of the players moved to the CIS superteam Astana Dragons. Being one of the players left out, GuardiaN joined Alexey "⁠OverDrive⁠" Birukov’s Nostalgie mix where he played with his fellow countryman Martin "⁠STYKO⁠" Styk and his future teammate Ioann "⁠Edward⁠" Sukhariev.

GuardiaN donning the Virtus.pro jersey in 2013

“Thanks to hooch and OverDrive I got the chance to show what I was capable of and that I could compete with the best. They invited me to play an online season of StarLadder and to attend a Major qualifier at DreamHack Winter in Jönköping with them. I am really grateful that they let me play, as they basically opened the gates of the international scene for me. For a short period of time before that,I had got to play with shox and some of the German players like strux1 and stavros. We had a great time, but we knew it was only for a short period of time since shox already had an offer from the French superteam. It was a great experience.”

In 2014, after joining Natus Vincere, GuardiaN was able to win his first LAN, the SLTV StarSeries IX Finals. That same year, GuardiaN was named the 11th best player, but it was in 2015 when the Slovakian AWPer was really able to show what he was capable of, going on to become the world’s number two player behind Olof "⁠olofmeister⁠" Kajbjer. As an aggressive AWPer that could abuse his rivals early on in rounds, GuardiaN had been instrumental in getting his team four first-place finishes as well as a second place at the DreamHack Cluj-Napoca Major.

“At the beginning, it was really hard, especially the communication. English was not a way to play in Na`Vi or Virtus.pro. In VP I learned some Russian basics, and when I joined Na`Vi they basically taught me the whole Russian language. After a year and a half, I can say that I was good enough to it fluently, with small grammar mistakes, of course. There were no other problems for me to play in such teams. We all were competitive, young, and hungry to win.”

Things cooled off for GuardiaN in 2016, as he went down to No.17 on the top 20 list as the CIS side struggled to get results, especially later on in the year. Everything following its course in early 2017, but the Slovakian AWPer and his team were going through a rough patch. It was then that he received an offer he could not refuse, and after four years with the Ukrainian organization, GuardiaN decided to take a step in a new direction, going on to join FaZe.

GuardiaN spent four years in Na`Vi before transferring to FaZe

By the end of 2017, GuardiaN was No.9 in the ranking. A good part of it was thanks to his play in the European combine, with whom he had three EVPs, including one in one of the most dominating runs in recent CS:GO history, ESL One New York 2017, where he and his colleagues secured the title without dropping a single map. That year, he also won ELEAGUE Premier and ECS Season 4.

"When I found out that FaZe were interested in me joining them, I was really happy, although at the same time I was sad to leave Na`Vi, where I had spent four years. We were really close friends and we created memories for life that I will never forget. But yeah, I wanted to move on and try something new.”

GuardiaN GuardiaN 2018 LAN tournament stats Tournament Event Team (place) Rating 2.0 (in team) ADR KPR DPR Impact KAST Award (2nd) 1.24 (2nd, +8% ) 75.5 0.79 0.57 1.29 75.4% EVP (4th) 1.05 (3rd, -3% ) 71.1 0.70 0.65 1.08 68.9% (2nd) 1.18 (2nd, +6% ) 74.5 0.78 0.61 1.29 70.5% EVP (3-4th) 1.07 (4th, -6% ) 72.6 0.69 0.64 1.08 68.5% (5-8th) 1.01 (3rd, -4% ) 63.1 0.68 0.63 0.99 69.0% (1st) 1.22 (2nd, +8% ) 76.7 0.81 0.60 1.26 74.5% MVP (3-4th) 0.99 (4th, -9% ) 66.2 0.63 0.65 1.00 64.8% (3-4th) 1.19 (2nd, +9% ) 78.5 0.76 0.61 1.18 74.0% (1st) 1.30 (2nd, +10% ) 83.3 0.84 0.56 1.31 76.5% EVP (3-4th) 1.13 (3rd, 1% ) 76.7 0.74 0.62 1.15 69.0% (7-8th) 0.96 (3rd, -8% ) 65.4 0.61 0.64 0.85 68.9% (5-8th) 1.21 (2nd, +8% ) 75.4 0.80 0.61 1.23 72.3% (5-8th) 1.07 (3rd, -3% ) 72.4 0.70 0.65 0.96 70.8% (7-8th) 1.08 (2nd, +5% ) 68.1 0.70 0.58 1.04 70.9% (1st) 1.18 (2nd, +5% ) 71.3 0.74 0.55 1.09 75.5% EVP (4th) 1.03 (3rd, +5% ) 72.1 0.67 0.65 1.02 66.7% (3-4th) 0.91 (4th, -11% ) 57.1 0.56 0.59 0.85 62.8% (5th) 0.97 (2nd, +4% ) 65.8 0.61 0.67 1.09 63.5% 5%+ above average 5%+ above average 5%+ below average 5%+ below average Closer than 5% to average Closer than 5% to average

The year did not start well for GuardiaN, as FaZe found themselves on the losing end of a comeback in a Major final that ended with Cloud9 taking the title from under their noses. For GuardiaN individually, however, the beginning of the year was not a bad one, as he kicked it off by getting an EVP at the Major thanks to his 1.24 rating (1.53 during the New Legends Stage). There, he was also the best clutcher with 8 1vsXs won and was one of the top five rated players. After that came StarSeries Season 4, where FaZe went out in semi-finals to Natus Vincere, and where GuardiaN’s rating slipped down to 1.05.

FaZe traveled to Poland to play at the Spodek Arena, where they were able to reset from the Major and StarSeries, making a run all of the way to the final. They were unable to bag a win, however, as a heroic run from fnatic including an overtime win in the fifth map gave the Swedes the title. GuardiaN’s form was back in tip top shape at the event in Poland, where he ended with a 1.18 rating to receive his second EVP of the season just three events in. The Slovakian player also tied for most clutches, equalling his year-high 8 1vsXs won from the ELEAGUE Major.

“Losing a Major final is always hard. You put so many hours into the game, practicing at home, bootcamping, and then you lose the final after being up 15:11 in the last map. Well, that is a crushing feeling, I can tell you that. But that was the first event of the year. We had at least 15 in front of us and there is no reason to set a bad atmosphere for the whole year, right? I think we dealt with it well and after that, we went into the Katowice event with a winning spirit. Unfortunately, we lost in the finals once again.

“Honestly, I think losing Katowice final was more painful than losing the Major final—at least for me. Maybe because I had already lost some Major finals, or maybe I can deal with it easier nowadays. No idea, but losing the Katowice final was much harder for me than the Major in Boston.”

GuardiaN and his team then traveled to Hungary to take part in the V4 Future Sports Festival, a Medium Event that would prove to be slippery for the European superteam as they would go out to Virtus.pro in the semi-finals. Despite the slip-up, GuardiaN maintained a 1.07 rating, but it would get worse before it got better. The following event, DreamHack Masters Marseille, was the first one for the team without olofmeister, who had taken a leave of absence from the team. In his stead, Richard "⁠Xizt⁠" Landström was brought in, but the event in France proved to be a bit much for the team, who went out in 5-8th place after losses to Cloud9 in the group stage and Astralis in the quarter-finals. GuardiaN hit his lowest rating to date there at 1.01.

“We knew Xizt was on the transfer list and we did not really have any other option at that time since it was the middle of the season. There were no players to get and we did not know how long Olof would be missing. I think we were lucky to get Xizt because he is a great player, he is very calm and collected when he is playing. So at that time, he was the best possible option we could go for and he filled Olof’s role very well.”

The wheel turned as FaZe traveled across the globe to attend IEM Sydney. The team that had gone in 5-8th place in Marseille was nowhere to be found and they were able to take revenge on Astralis in the best-of-five final to lift the trophy in convincing fashion. In Australia, GuardiaN also showed his best self with a team-high 1.22 rating, earning him the MVP award for the tournament, his first since Counter Pit League Season 2 Finals in 2016.

“IEM Sydney was a really important event for us. Playing with a stand-in was tough, our game was based on communication and mental strength. We wanted to win for Olof as much as we wanted it for ourselves, so I think we probably played the best CS we could at that event. It was an amazing tournament run, I can say.

“Being MVP of a tournament and of your team is always great. If you get the MVP medal, it shows that you put in a lot of hours to help your team win an event. I actually wasn’t aware that it was my first MVP since Counter Pit Season 2, so it feels even better now!”

In Icarian fashion, GuardiaN fell below average for the first time of the year, albeit just barely, after his MVP performance in Sydney. FaZe played their last event with Xizt at the ESL Pro League Season 7 FInals in Dallas, where the Slovak had a 0.99 rating in his team’s semi-final run. FaZe then brought Jorgen "⁠cromen⁠" Robertsen in for the next event, another online league’s LAN finals, ECS Season 5. Once again, GuardiaN and his team were bested by Astralis in the semi-finals, but there the 27-year-old AWPer was able to rocket back up to a 1.19 rating, the second-best on the team.

“cromen is a really good player. Sooner or later he will join a top team and show even more of what he did with us. Also, he played his first ever Big Event on a big stage, it was insane how he dealt with the pressure. He’s a good guy and an even better player, but there were no thoughts of us keeping him because we knew olofmeister would come back before ELEAGUE.”

GuardiaN & co. then had a long flight to Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where they would once again win a tournament. FaZe did so with cromen in the lineup, this time, beating mousesports in a best-of-five grand final. In Brazil, GuardiaN went back to big numbers—his biggest of the year, in fact—with a 1.30 rating (+80 KDD). He was unable to bag a second MVP, however, as a stellar performance by Nikola "⁠NiKo⁠" Kovač put him in the Bosnian’s shadow, although he was easily named an EVP for his high rating as well as his 0.84 KPR and his year-high 83.3 ADR in the 12 maps he played (11 with a +1.00 rating).

GuardiaN had a great run in Belo Horizonte, where FaZe won the trophy

ESL One Cologne was FaZe’s last tournament with cromen on the roster, where the European combine managed a semi-final run before getting upset by the local dark horse, BIG. GuardiaN wasn’t able to maintain his astronomical numbers from Brazil, but he did manage to post a solid 1.13 rating and 76.7 ADR in his team’s 3rd-4th place finish. To cap off the season, FaZe traveled to Atlanta to compete at ELEAGUE Premier. It was to be olofmeister’s return, but instead of a triumphant comeback, FaZe went out in last place following defeats to mousesports and fnatic.

“It was the last event before the summer break and we did not really practice for it. I think we took it as a vacation, to get closer as friends since it’s when olof came back to the team. The ‘fresh start’ for the second half of the year was needed. We had no hard feelings towards each other for losing early at ELEAGUE.”

The second half of the year kicked off at DreamHack Stockholm, and GuardiaN was ready for it as he hit a 1.21 rating despite his team being unable to make it past the quarter-finals following another defeat to mousesports. After the event in Sweden came the FACEIT Major, but GuardiaN & co. were unable to make a splash other than securing their Legends status, going out in the quarter-finals to the by now world-beating Astralis. In London, GuardiaN got a 1.07 rating after 8 maps played.

GuardiaN's last good event of the year was EPICENTER, where he had a 1.18 rating

Then came ESL One New York, a tournament that had been a talisman for FaZe in 2017 but that this time around was the complete opposite, as they went out in last place after two losses. GuardiaN had a team-high 1.08 rating, but it didn’t mean much in the grand scheme of things. It was in Moscow that FaZe were able to turn it around, as they were able to once again lift some silverware at EPICENTER 2018. GuardiaN’s 1.18 rating earned him his fourth and last EVP mention of the year, as he led the stats tables for AWP kills (130) and 1vsX situations won, 6.

“We are a strong team with 5 players that have won Big Events before, so of course we knew that we have the winning spirit in us. It was just matter of time before everything would ‘click together’ and we would get a good result once again.

“Winning IEM Sydney, ESL One Belo Horizonte, and Epicenter were my best memories of 2018. Winning titles is what we are playing for.”

FaZe were unable to end the year on a high, however, as rumours of Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen being sidelined started to float. At BLAST Pro Series in Copenhagen, the European combine went out in 4th place, and by then GuardiaN was starting to come down, as he posted a 1.03 rating. The last two tournaments of the year were some of GuardiaN’s worst in terms of numbers, as he hit a year-low 0.91 rating in FaZe’s semi-final run at IEM Chicago, followed by a 0.97 rating in their 5th place finish at BLAST Pro Series Lisbon.

“My personal and our team’s goal is to win the Major, of course. To get the team working as well as we can, to be dedicated to CS, and to win even more than Astralis did last year.

Why was GuardiaN the 11th best player of 2018?

GuardiaN earned his placement partially thanks to having the highest peaks out of any player in the ranking thus far, placing top 4 in the MVP race at five Big Events—all of which led to grand final appearances by FaZe. Those top 4 placings in the run for an MVP title include the time he won it at IEM Sydney as well as the two times he was runner-up, at the ELEAGUE Major and ESL One Belo Horizonte.

GuardiaN was a serious MVP contender four times in 2018

Statistically, GuardiaN is the best AWPer of the year (for the third consecutive time), averaging 0.44 AWP kills per round (#1), and racking up a total of 1779 AWP kills at Big Events (#1). But those weren’t all of his strengths, as the Slovak excelled at opening duels (56.9% won, #8), winning 1vsX situations (57, #5), surviving (0.61 DPR, #6), and flash assists (0.06 per round, #8), while also boasting an impressive KDD record at Big Events, (+478, #5). Although GuardiaN was inconsistent throughout the year, his peaks demonstrate his ability to perform in big matches, which can be seen by looking at his 1.10 playoff rating (#11) and especially his grand finals rating, 1.14 (#4).

It is the aforementioned inconsistency, however, which is stopping GuardiaN from reaching a top 10 placing in this year’s ranking, as he had several not-so-impressive outings in 2018. GuardiaN had five events within 0.05 of a 1.00 rating, and his low peak was a 0.91 rating in Chicago. Although he proved his ability to perform under pressure at many Big Events, as outlined in the first two paragraphs of this section, it is the gap between highs and lows that hampered the 27-year-old AWPer.

"It is a great accomplishment to be consistently in the top 20 ranking since CS:GO came out, and it shows that I can still compete on at the top level. I hope I can keep it up for 2019 and help my team win some events.”

Bold prediction:

GuardiaN joins Valdemar "⁠valde⁠" Bjørn Vangså, Timothy "⁠autimatic⁠" Ta, and Andreas "⁠Xyp9x⁠" Højsleth in naming OpTic’s latest recruit, Ismail "⁠refrezh⁠" Ali, as the next to join the elite tier of players and become a top 20 contender in 2019.

“It is really hard to pick someone nowadays, because they are either known from FPL games or they are/were already in a team. I would say, based on what he has shown already, that refrezh could grow as a player this year a lot and make it to the top tier player list."

Stay tuned to our Top 20 players of 2018 ranking powered by EGB.com and take a look at the Introduction article to learn more about how the players were selected.