NRG keiko: “We’re pretty behind [on the meta]. But it’s on us” – VCT Americas Stage 1 Interview

After NRG fell 0-2 to KRÜ Esports in VCT Americas Stage 1, Hotspawn caught up with Georgio “keiko” Sanassy to discuss the loss, NRG’s meta struggles coming off a third-place finish at Masters Santiago, his adjustment to North America, and why he wants Neon removed from the game entirely.

Hotspawn: Commiserations on the loss today.

What do you think was the biggest thing KRÜ had going for them?

Keiko: Their attack sides were really good. I think Saadhak called his Lotus really well, and Split too. They also punished us a lot on our attack with the Judge on Split, which sucks, but it is what it is. On Lotus they defaulted pretty well. It was a good game and they had really good macro and they were all individually shooting. I think we just, individually, we’re all in like a pretty much slump right now, so it sucks. But I feel next week it’ll be better.

Hotspawn: It’s been a big transition since you guys came in third at Santiago, and you mentioned currently being in a slump.

Is it the meta, or is there something else going on?

Keiko: We definitely were behind on the meta coming into this from Santiago. I think we didn’t practice much of the Neon comps. But we’ve switched now, so we don’t have much practice on the new stuff either. We’re pretty behind, I would say. But I mean, it’s on us, I think we read it wrong and we’re just gonna fix up for next week. From Santiago we should have taken more from what was changing. Like, they nerfed Waylay… The season started, so. Yeah, I mean, it is what it is.

Hotspawn: What do you think about nerfing Waylay but not Neon?

Keiko: I don’t think they need to nerf Neon, it’s just the meta that sucks right now. There’s no sentinel utility: Vyse is the only playable thing and it’s just full random chaos. I don’t know what they’re doing, to be honest. They nerf Waylay, not Neon, and there are no trips for Neon, nothing really. Every round is decided in the first 20 seconds on whoever’s Neon fights the pack with full util first. It must be entertaining for the viewers, but it’s not fun to play, that’s for sure.

Hotspawn: How do you think we bring sentinels back? We were running triple sentinel comps at one point and now we have zero.

Keiko: They just need to not make all the sentinels useless, just make them a little bit stronger. There’s not really much stopping power, and if you’re playing an anchor you’re just getting touched by triple dive Neon Judge and getting nuked by full util with not much you can do. This meta really sucks for anchor players. It’s just full chaos every round, not really much predictability.

THE FLAWLESS RUN CONTINUES!@KRUesports takes the series 2-0! #VCTAmericas pic.twitter.com/gMm3Xr5gvD

— VALORANT Esports NA (@valesportsna) April 19, 2026

Hotspawn: You mentioned in a previous interview that you really wanted to play in NA. Now that you’ve been here for a bit,

How has the experience been, and how does it differ from EMEA?

keiko: It’s very interesting to play here. It’s a lot different from EMEA, each team has its own identity and personality, the way they approach the game. It’s nice being here. I like LA. I know some people don’t really like LA, but I really like it, the city and everything here. And yeah, the weather’s a big thing. Definitely different from EMEA. I knew everyone from EMEA mostly, but coming into NA I really didn’t know many people, so it was just a new experience. It’s been a hard transition, but it’s fun.

Hotspawn: What do you think about new controller Miks, and why haven’t more teams been picking him up?

Keiko: The new controller Miks kind of sucks, not gonna lie. His kit is like Sage smokes, it’s a supportive smokes role. It doesn’t really fit the meta right now. It’s not aggressive enough. Omen is just better — it has flashes, dive TPs. And Astra has more utility if you want that. And on all the maps that need three smokes, you play Brim. So it just doesn’t really fit anything. It has nothing really going for it.

Hotspawn: On today’s game specifically, you changed your Split comp since last week, running Vyse now.

What was the thinking behind Vyse over Deadlock, and running a sentinel on Split at all when most teams don’t?

Keiko: The reason we picked Vyse over Deadlock is that Deadlock’s net, the 60-second timer kind of kills its initiator utility. On the attack you only have the net, and if you use it for control you won’t have it when you need it. With Vyse it’s kind of the same, but you just have the mollies for the execs, so it’s technically more utility. And then there’s everyone playing Neon; Neon just runs through the Deadlock trap. If you do it right you can run past it. So we just said, if everyone’s playing Neon, play Vyse.

Hotspawn: What’s your take on the Yoru nerf? Masters winners Nongshim relied on him heavily and now nobody runs him at all.

Was it taken too far?

Keiko: Yeah, they absolutely killed Yoru. I think they nerfed everything to the ground and they’re making the game a little bit — I mean, it’s not a bad thing, you just need to adapt. Everyone else is adapting, so there’s not much to complain about. I just think the timing could be a little bit better, and instead of outright killing an agent you can just make small adjustments. But it is what it is.

Hotspawn: At Liquid you made it to every international event but never broke out of group stage. This year you already have a third-place finish at your first tournament.

What are your personal goals for 2026?

Keiko: I want to lift the trophy, because everyone on my team has one and I’m the odd one out, it just kind of sucks. But right now I’m just focused on actually making London, because we’re in a pretty bad spot right now. That’s the current goal.

Hotspawn: You’re 0-2 now and pretty much need to win every game from here to guarantee a playoff spot.

What do you think is the biggest thing to fix from today?

Keiko: I’m not sure, I’ll leave that to the coach and staff to figure out. Trusting them. We’re not playing good right now, so we’re gonna fix it.

Hotspawn: Last question:

If you could Thanos snap one agent out of the game, who would it be?

Keiko: Neon. Not fun to play against at all.