On the 3rd of February 2020, I had a sit down with Finn "Karrigan" Andersen, the captain and IGL of Mousesports who are currently located 2nd on the HLTV Rankings.





This interview came after 2-0 sweeps over MAD Lions and Virtus.Pro at the ICE Challenge London 2020 being held at the exCel Centre. The Dane will soon face MAD Lions in a revenge match up in the Semi-Finals of the event.





"As you can see, we've had our eyes on you for some time Mr. Andersen"





Starting off with some recent results, you've played 2 series so far, both with close maps

16-14 vs VP on Train

19-15 vs MAD Lions on Mirage

Were these close results due to good play from the opposition or do you think there was some rust on the team?



"I think its a mix of both, first of all, we haven't played a tournament since EPICENTER, meaning we are practicing a lot of new stuff for this tournament and also we want to play a little more structured, maybe towards Katowice have another style in our gameplan.



Also, another thing is people don't underestimate us anymore, meaning they will try to challenge our map pool, obviously, which is what I think MAD Lions tried and also what the VP tried with the Mirage and Vertigo pick, right, so that means they respect our map pool so I think it's a mix of both."



"I think MAD Lions, probably is for me, the second favorites to win, I think they are playing really good CS."



"I think we did a lot of bad mistakes on Train CT Side which we just watched today so I think it's a mix of both."





Now, you're already in the semi-finals, where do you think you are going to place at this tournament?



"I think anything else but winning the tournament is a disappointment but what we also said before going into the tournament is that this tournament is to get back in shape basically so if there is something we have to fix before Katowice, we can do it; If it's going as it is so far with 2-0s but still some close maps, then we are pretty ready for Katowice and we just have to improve on some small stuff."





"In the end, winning is everything here, if not, that's a disappointment but it's not like we are going really mad, it's more about getting back in shape."





Over a year ago, you were on loan to Envy for the minors, I want to know how was the experience being in a different continent for a team compared to your standard European teams?





"I have been playing competitively for a long time so playing with some NA players was kind of different in a way of the mentality, I think, the way they view the game and also I think the players in Europe are more all around I'd say where the American all often focus on skill, a lot of focus on AWPing but they still lack some team play in a way."





"I think I experienced, that in Envy, that I have to first of all focus on myself, how I can be the best iteration of myself in the game and put me in that spot then make sure that everybody else is happy. They gave me a learning curve of how I wanted to improve for the year of 2019."



Are there any of those teammates you still follow?





"I am still pretty close with JDM and Nifty, I was also good friends with the coach so that's someone I am still following."





Even more recently at Summit, you had a fellow Danish man in Nato as a stand-in, how was it playing with him?





"I think he has some talent with AWP, he has still a tonne of work to go to a high level but I think it was a good choice for us to take him. We gave a player a chance to show himself again. He showed he can play on a higher level than he did on Heroic and I am just happy he found a place where he is happy and they believe he is the right player to make Nordavind better. Obviously, it was a good situation for us and for him."





How different is Mousesports to FaZe as an Organisation?





"I think it's 2 completely different Orgs, FaZe is a very big brand where it is like all about getting the best players you can and become the best team in the world, top number 1, everything else is bad. In theory, they want to be the best team in the world.





Mouz is more conservative towards that. Being top 5 is the goal we have as a team and obviously, we have higher goals but what I can say is we are a top 5 team.



It is 2 different things, Mouz is a smaller organization where CS:GO is the number one priority and in FaZe, CS:GO is not the number one priority, they have YouTubers a lot of Call of Duty and other different games. I think that is the biggest difference, the feeling that we are the number one thing in our organization."





With the recent rising of Heroic and MAD Lions, and North also with the MSL addition, what are your current thoughts on top Danish Counterstrike?





"We need a better second team, in my opinion, obviously, MAD Lions is number two in Denmark but I still think they have a ways to go. I remember when we had Dignitas and Astralis, and Astralis and North for a period of time, that was when both teams were around that top 6 spot. I don't think we have another top 10 team, maybe we are getting close to top 15 team together with Astralis. I feel they are slacking a little, the problem is maybe that we have three different teams in Heroic, North and MAD Lions, if you connect all of those to make a Danish power, maybe you will have a contender for top 5 in the world."





"Right now I think all the talents are some kind of splitted up into different teams."





This tournament is full of Talented rosters like the abovementioned MAD Lions, do any of these teams scare you?





"If you look down the line, MAD Lions is a team you kind of see as a possibility of making top 10 within a few months. I think, by far, that team is talented and underrated compared to what they are right now, so I would say that team does.





Plus, Na'Vi is also Na'Vi. They have Simple, Electronic, they have Flamie and so on. A lot of great players, you expect then to be a top 5 team down the line which you don't really have with MAD Lions."





So you've told me you didn't Bootcamp before coming here, Have you got any planned?





"So the plan is that we are going to have a Bootcamp before Katowice, meaning we are going to go a little different with our playbook, do also some stuff with our sports psychologist, getting ready for the new tournament, a big tournament of the year.





If we had Bootcamped before this tournament and then another one, you would kind of feel burnt out. That is something we want to make sure we don't do this year so we choose the tournaments we want to be and where we want to peak. Last year we had to grind our way into the top 5 to get invites but it was also really tough after Epicenter."





What did you get up to in the player break instead?





"I went on vacation. I relaxed with my family between Christmas and New Years and then me and my girlfriend went on vacation to Finland for four days which was snowy and really quiet, to kind of reset and get ready for the new season."





How much input does Rejin insert into the line-up?





"I think he puts a lot of work into the line-up, what he does in practice, he corrects the mistakes close to one hour every day after practice. He puts a lot of sacrifice into the team, a lot of heart and I think he creates a true difference in this line-up"





What're your current thoughts on the Krieg and AUG?





"I think the Krieg is still a little too good, I think they should buff the price a little more. I think the AUG is very balanced how it is now, I think I'm one of the only guys still playing it consistently whereas the Krieg is what everybody is playing."





What do you think the potential for your roster is, and the potential of Frozen and Woxic?





"I think the potential is very high, I mean Woxic showed he is the number 12 player in the world and we only really started in the last 6 months when we started to reach big play-offs. I think he has shown he has the potential to become even better."



"As for Frozen, the sky is the limit"





"He showed, in the last 3 months, after we switched some roles, that he is back in the zone and what he feels really comfortable with.





The potential depends on how we react to being the number 2 team in the world right now, how we will react under pressure where everybody expects us to go deep. That is where you see the real caliber of these young players, can they stand the distance or are they like a few months hitting their peak. Also, if they have a slump, how do they come back."



"If we keep playing like we do now, we will become the best team in the world, the question is how long and how we do it."





Quick-Fire Round, Say the first thing that comes into your head





Best gun?

SG

De_Nuke?

Classic Map

Cromen?

Norwegian talent that really didn't live up to potential

Rio Major?

Insane Crowd

Monitor?

BenQ

Best Player?

At the moment, ZywOo

FaZe?

Superstar Team

London?

Beautiful City

The Wolf of Wall Street?

Very strange movie



Also an insane Ace

Trophy? "Major Winner, Me"









Thank you very much, Finn, for your time today. Good luck with the rest of the tournament.