Dev1ce Joins Ninjas In Pyjamas, Departing From Astralis
After a five-year-long tenure, four Major championships, and an integral part of one of the biggest esports dynasties ever, Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz has officially left Astralis to join Ninjas In Pyjamas.
Arguably one of the best Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) players to ever grace the game, the decision to leave Astralis appears to be of dev1ce's own accord, with Astralis stating "The transfer is a result of a personal request from the player, who has expressed his wish to work out of Stockholm and still be able to have a team and organization close to him."
Speaking about the move on Twitter, dev1ce simply stated "Let's bring home some trophies!"
He also took to a blog post to say "The past year with COVID and everything else associated has been incredibly tough for all of us, like so many people in so many careers. Living far from the office, not being able to meet your teammates, online and virtual training, and playing from afar has been challenging. It has become clear, how much I miss having a team and an organization close to me, and for so many reasons the time simply feels right to change things up and find myself in all this."
"My time with Astralis, on the team, in the office, with the performance group and all the partners has been a key period in my life that I will always cherish. Primarily I want to thank all the fans for their support, it is impossible to say how significant they are to me, the team, the game, and the sport."
Taking to a blog post, Kasper Hvidt, Director of Sports in Astralis said "Nicolai has been a part of Astralis and the core of the team since day one, and he has been vital to the culture and legacy of the team."
"His personality and contribution to Astralis, though, is also the reason why we have made the decision to help him out and arrange a transfer to NiP. For personal reasons, he has asked us for the possibility to transfer to an organization closer to his home in Stockholm, and after lengthy talks, it became clear that this is what he felt is best for him. We immediately contacted NiP to see if there was any way we could come to an agreement of a transfer - and here we are."
Moving forward, Astralis will line up for the DreamHack Masters from April 29 with Lucas "Bubzkji" Andersen taking a permanent position in the team.
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Image via Ninjas in Pyjamas