Danish esports organization Astralis are actively looking for immediate replacements for Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen and Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard. According to sources cited by HLTV, the club intends to make a double roster change in its CS2 lineup in the near future.
The news of the changes comes as a surprise, as just last Saturday the team ended an almost seven-year LAN trophy drought by winning Stake Ranked Episode 4 in Barcelona after defeating Nemiga. The organization’s decision is linked to contract negotiations that have reached an impasse: jabbi’s contract expires at the end of November, while HooXi’s expires at the end of the year. Astralis are looking to make the transfers now to avoid losing the players for free. The contract of the third player, Victor “Staehr” Staehr, runs until 2027.
One of the candidates for an incoming transfer is Kamil “siuhy” Szkaradek, the former MOUZ captain who recently left Liquid after spending three months on the bench.
Current team status:
- Triumph in Barcelona: The victory at Stake Ranked Episode 4 gave the team its first LAN trophy since 2019.
- Ranking position: Astralis have entered the top 10 of the VRS world ranking and have practically secured their spot at the PGL Major Singapore.
- Official position: Astralis have currently declined to comment in response to an inquiry from HLTV.
As a reminder, M80 have secured their spot at the Singapore Major — the team is preparing for the tournament while awaiting Valve's decision regarding stickers.