The Danish stars of Team Solomid are probably the best team that has never any of the so far six major tournaments.
As of late their performance has been strong and at Dreamhack Cluj-Napoca, the last major of the year, they get a new chance.
Andreas ”Xyp9x” Højsleth seems confident.
– This time I really think and believe we will win, he tells Aftonbladet Esport.

Team Solomid have been showing a strong performance as of late. In the back bone of the team sits the Danish star Andreas ”Xyp9x” Højsleth – truly a veteran of the CS:GO community.

Even though some consider Xyp9x and his team mates to be the best in the world, the Danes are yet to win a major tournament. At Dreamhack Cluj-Napoca they get a chance.

”Team EnvyUs are our biggest rivals”

In the group stages Team Solomid won their first match against FlipSid3 Tactics convincingly. The last major winners, Fnatic, have been looking to be in a slum – and TSM’s chances of winning a major now seem greater than ever. According to Xyp9x however, it is not the Swedes of Fnatic, by some deemed the greatest team in CS history, that are the biggest rivals.
– It’s Team EnvyUs. It’s because of their playing style, it just suits us worse than anybody else I guess. They are kind of our nemesis. We had Ninjas in Pyjamas back in the day, now we don’t have NiP – we have EnvyUs. But I think we are starting to sort out what they do against us and figure it out, Xyp9x tells Aftonbladet Esport.

Why not Fnatic?
– We have beaten them so many times on LAN and they don’t seem to like our play style, but they are a good team and we never underestimate them. I’d say they are the second hardest team for us, the Danes says and continues:
– I think Fnatic can win, they always show up for majors. I expect them to go deep into the tournament, but from what they’ve shown lately? It’s not what they showed ahead of previous majors, and their game against Vexed was just not convincing. They made a good comeback, but they were struggling in that match.

”I really think and believe we will win”

Team Solomid have been in the top of the scene for a long time – but they are yet to win a major.
According to Hltv.org’s world rankings they are the best team in the world – but they sometimes fail when it matters the most. Now is the time to step up.
– How we do at this major is really going to decide how we are doing as a team. I expect that we go at least to the finals or win the tournament, and I haven’t expected that before. When we were playing in the other majors I always expected semi finals – or if we were lucky maybe the final. But this time I really think and believe we will win the final.

”They had better things to do with their lives”

Xyp9x was playing competitively back in 1.6, but never with any big teams. He got his first real breakthrough at the age of 17 when playing under the Fnatic banner in the early days of CS:GO. This was at a time when 1.6 seemed to be dying and few believed the sequel, Global Offensive, would change anything.
– A lot of 1.6 players weren’t getting into CS:GO because it was so small. There weren’t any tournaments and the prize pools were small – it was even hard to fight for a salary back then. I remember that I had to convince my old team to transition to CS:GO and they didn’t want to because there was no salary. Eventually I got us a huge deal, but they still said they didn’t want to go because it was a new game and they said they had better things to do with their lives.

What about the pro life attracted you?
– I’ve always been watching competitive CS. I’ve been a fan of the 1.6 idols, so whenever the Danish teams, like mTw, were playing – I watched.
– That’s really what motivates me to become better, seeing how well they did and then doing better.

”It’s been quite a ride”

Since that time about three years ago, CS:GO has grown to become one of the biggest esports in the world, with huge tournaments popping up all over the world.
– It’s been amazing to follow. I still have so many years left of my career, at least I hope so, and I can only imagine how big it’s going to be in five years.

How has the journey been for you?
– It’s been quite a ride. At first I took it as a hobby and more as something I really wanted to do. More and more it became a job. I still think I have the spark and that I want to do this. But over time – and I think all pro players thinks this – you lose your interest in playing all the time. And now you have to do that or else you won’t be at the top.

In our world today, being one of the greatest players in the world makes you a celebrity, something which Xyp9x has experienced on the streets of Denmark.
– We have a lot of fans and I’m an idol to a lot of people. At first it was kind of surprising to me, it felt overwhelming and unreal that people would walk up and ask for my autograph or a picture, but now it’s more common.

On Friday Team Solomid play their second match of the major. There they will face Gamers2, a team that just recently beat the German stars of Mousesports 16-8. The tournament can be followed at Dreamhack’s Twitch channel.