After a tough 2018, Cloud9 has been lagging behind in the HLTV CSGO World Rankings for some time. Fortunately, they are starting off the new year on the right foot. The 2018 Boston Major champions are back to being a top ten team in the world, at least for now.

Ever since Cloud9 won the Boston Major last January, it has been relatively downhill for the veteran CSGO team. As a result, they would undergo multiple roster changes that would shake up their lineup. Now, hopes are high for 2019, as they are boasting a new roster that could be great, given some time. However, their road to a top-ten appearance on the HLTV World Rankings has been tough.

A Shaky 2018

After Boston, Cloud9 could not seem to replicate the same level of success. Their post-Major rush did not last for long, as they would only manage to make it for the Grand Finals of cs_summit2. Besides that, they would suffer early exits from several big events such as StarSeries, IEM Katowice, and WESG 2017. As a result, Cloud9 would part ways with star player, Jacky “Stewie2K” Yip, who would end up joining SK Gaming.

From then on, Cloud9 would go through multiple stand-ins for their roster. First, they would pick up Pujan “FNS” Mehta, but due to playing style differences would be transfer listed shortly after. They would acquire Martin “STYKO” Styk in July but would have very limited success with him as well. Cloud9 would also say goodbye to long-time in-game leader, Tarik “tarik” Celik, after a lack of good performances.

By the end of 2018, Cloud9’s roster was looking completely different. They had taken in Maikil “Golden” Selim, Robin “flusha” Rönnquist and Fabien “kioShiMa” Fiey. It was a fresh start for Cloud9, who needed consistency after a year filled with inconsistency. Unfortunately, Golden has been having health problems, so Cloud9 hasn’t had much time to play with their in-game leader. However, breaking the top ten of the World Rankings should give them some motivation to work even harder in the future.

Looking Forward with Cloud9

2019 is wide-open for Cloud9. However, it all comes down to building consistency within the lineup. Not playing with Golden might have a pretty big effect on the team down the line. Right now, they are playing with former Swole Patrol member, Jordan “Zellsis” Montemurro. He didn’t light up the scoreboard at the ELEAGUE CSGO Invitational, but they might need to stick with him while Golden rests and heals.

Additionally, we will need to see whether or not Cloud9 will be changing coaches. The team has been trialing with Ronald “Rambo” Kim, who was last the coach for compLexity. Once Cloud9 finds a proper replacement for Soham “valens“ Chowdhury, they can begin building towards a stable and brighter future for the team. Their next tournament will be at the upcoming IEM Katowice Major, where they will face off against some of the best teams in CSGO. That competition will be fierce and difficult, so hopefully Golden gets better in time for this February when the Major kicks off.

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