Astralis signs cadiaN from Liquid bench after brief return to NA
Astralis has signed in-game leader Casper "cadiaN" Møller to their roster today, exactly three months after Team Liquid moved the IGL/AWPer to the bench. He joined Liquid prior to the start of 2024, but was benched due to a string of disappointing results and a lack of team cohesion after only six months.
While cadiaN will take the in-game leadership roles away from Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz, he will not relieve the four-time Major winner of his AWP duties. The 29-year-old cadiaN will play as an IGL rifler, much like Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken has been doing for Team Liquid since cadiaN was benched.
"Some may even question whether stepping away from the AWP is the right decision," cadiaN wrote in an Astralis press release. "But the truth is, I share the same vision as Astralis: always striving to be the best, building a top Danish CS roster, and competing for the biggest titles."
CadiaN will reunite with both Martin "stavn" Lund and Jakob "jabbi" Nygaard on Astralis, less than a year after the trio's turbulent and public split saw cadiaN leave Heroic, only for stavn and jabbi to leave for Astralis soon after.
"We've addressed the challenges we faced in the past, and today we're fully aligned," cadiaN wrote. "After a year of reflection, we’re still hungry for trophies and continue to share the same tactical vision that drove our success before."
Astralis' first match with cadiaN at the helm is scheduled for September 25 against Vitality at the BLAST Premier Fall Final.
