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G2 Esports general manager Petar “peca” Marković has added more fuel to the rumours of Nikola “NiKo” Kovać’s looming departure from the team after the conclusion of Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024.
The first reports of NiKo getting ready to leave the European Counter-Strike squad started in August, linking the 27-year-old with Team Falcons.
While NiKo’s departure has yet to be officially announced peca’s recent post on X suggests the roster changes are all but confirmed.
“See you soon in Shanghai for the last dance,” he said, hinting that the Shanghai Major will indeed be the last time this roster plays together.
The X post surfaced less than a week after G2 Esports CEO Alban Dechelotte revealed in an interview that the team might be planning for a future without NiKo after the signing of Mario “malbsMd” Samayoa.
“But the fact that we signed malbsMd in July when he’s playing the same positions as NiKo, maybe it’s a bit of an anticipation of what’s to come, and maybe we’re already working on who will replace malbs in his anchor position, and he could move into the positions that NiKo will be leaving at the end of December,” he said.
This is the second time Team Falcons have chased NiKo, who they first approached in 2023 amid an ambitious roster rebuild.
Initially, it was reported he would join the Saudi squad, but NiKo decided to stay with G2 Esports in a surprising twist.
New reports, however, suggest a deal has been finalised and NiKo will leave G2 after four years upon the conclusion of Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024.
The tournament is set to kick off on November 30, featuring 24 Counter-Strike teams who will vie for the lion’s share of the US$1.25 million prize pool.
The top esports betting sites have yet to release outright markets for the Major; however, punters can find odds for the upcoming Regional Major Rankings (RMR) events in the Americas, Asia, and Europe.
