Russian VALORANT Stars nAts and Redgar Unable to Debut at Red Bull Home Ground
Russian VALORANT stars Ayaz “nAts” Akhmetshin and Igor “Redgar” Vlasov, recently signed by Team Liquid for 2023, won’t be able to make their debut at Red Bull Home Ground three due to visa issues.
The $100,000 VALORANT tournament in Europe was supposed to be Liquid’s first tournament with its fresh lineup, featuring teams like Vitality, Fokus, 100 Thieves, KRÜ Esports, Cloud9, Team Heretics, and FUT Esports. However, nAts and Redgar will have to sit out, with Enzo Mestari and Johan “Meddo” Lundborg stepping in as stand-ins.
“The requested visas for our players nAts and Redgar weren’t ready in time,” said Liquid in a statement. “We are truly disappointed we won’t be there as the team you expected, but nevertheless we will participate in the tourney. Meddo and Enzo will be joining as stand-ins. We look forward to playing some insane games with them!”
Instead of playing the tournament, nAts will run a watch party for Liquid’s fans during Red Bull Home Ground three.
This is a setback for Liquid, as they were hoping to test nAts and Redgar in official matches before 2023. However, it will provide an opportunity for Meddo and Enzo to showcase their skills as they have not been picked up by a franchised team yet.
Red Bull Home Ground three will take place in Manchester, England from Dec. 9 to 11, using VALORANT Patch 5.10.