On September 26th, Team Liquid faced Legacy Esports in the play-ins of the 2020 League of Legends World Championship. It was an easy win for Team Liquid as they rose to the top of the leaderboard alongside Papara SuperMassive with a 2-0 record. After their second win, “TL Commander”, Cho “CoreJJ” Yong-in joined Inven Global for an interview.

Congratulations on the win. How do you feel?

We came, we played, and we won. [Laughs] It doesn’t feel like we did much but I think we won through the class difference, and that feels good.

It’s your second straight win following your win yesterday. What went well?

We met comparably weaker teams, so whatever we did, the game was comfortable. I was able to see that our opponents were intimidated. It seems that they weren’t able to show even the plays they could pull off.

You said comparably weaker teams… Does that include MAD Lions from yesterday?

Yes. When we beat a team, there’s this effect that makes the team that lost to us seem weaker. When teams lose to Team Liquid, it’s not because Team Liquid is strong, the team that lost is weak, so I think whichever teams that lose to us are weak teams.

You’re appearing at your fifth consecutive Worlds. Whenever you come here, what’s different and what’s the same?

What the same is that wherever, whenever, whoever we’re playing, I get nervous. What’s different… I don’t know. Whenever I play, it’s fun, tense… It feels I’m playing for this thing.

How do you get over the nervousness?

I just usually go with the nervousness. [Laughs] With my mind fluttering… I feel every time is new.

Two members changed for TL compared to last year. What did they bring to the team?

I think we’ve become more flexible as a team. Whatever we do, whatever we think, we try them out. The champion pool as well. I think they brought flexibility to the team.

You said you get nervous. Your bot lane buddy, Tactical, is a rookie. Wasn’t he nervous getting on the Worlds stage?

I’m not sure if he got nervous or not. It’s alright if I get nervous, but if our ADC gets too nervous, that’s not good, so I guess I should comfort him more.

Is there any advice you gave him?

There’s not much that I told him. If you’re at a stage like Worlds and there’s nothing you’re doing well, it’s proper that you lose. I keep trying to remind Tactical of what he does well, why he does that well, and how he could magnify that strength.

Yesterday, you played the Twitch-Rakan comp. How do you see that bot duo?

I think it’s insanely OP. I don’t know if any team would let us pick them. Twitch and Rakan can deal damage, engage fights… They can do everything, so it’s really good.

Impact said that his realistic goal for this Worlds is reaching the semifinals. How about you?

I think Impact said semifinals to be really down-to-earth. If we get to the semis… I’d like to get to the finals.

Previously, you said that you’d like to meet Ruler at Worlds and kill him. You won’t get in the same group, but what would be the chances of that happening?

I’m not sure when we’ll meet, but we’ll win 100% against Ruler. Gen.G has to pray not to meet us.

Lastly, a word to the fans?

We’re doing great up to now, but Worlds is a stage that changes every single game. I’ll do my best to get through the remaining matches cleanly.