Despite throwing a wild card at BDS, Rogue’s plans were thwarted during the first weekend of the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) Spring Season. With another tough start, the team now faces the challenge of proving its critics wrong and avoiding the mistakes of recent splits, having finished in 9th or 10th place in the last four. In an exclusive interview with Sheep Esports, midlaner and captain Emil "Larssen" Larsson discusses the team’s cold streak, areas for improvement, his grind to Challenger, and his relationship with social media and critics.

Rogue went 0-2 this week, losing to Heretics and BDS. How are you feeling after this first week back in the LEC?

Emil "Larssen" Larsson: "Yeah, I feel really shit. A 0-2 week in this format, where only the top 6 go through, against bottom-tier opponents, it's not good enough. It's just bad. We can't go 0-2 in the first week against teams like this. So, I'm just really frustrated.

What have you guys been working on in the off-season, and how are you planning to improve as a team?

Larssen: The biggest thing from winter is that we had a lot of leads or games that were even, but we just played the mid-game poorly. It was often macro decisions or individual mistakes. So, the mid-game is something we focused on, because when we get leads, you can see it. Today, we should've won against BDS; I’m not sure about the gold, but I felt like we were winning confidently. Sadly, it’s still our issue. We had a 7k gold lead against Heretics and we managed to lose. We're working on it, but it's still not good enough.

As the captain and a leading figure of the team, how have you been handling the responsibility of keeping morale up, especially given the struggles the team has had since the start of the year?

Larssen: I've been trying hard, especially for spring. Since we had a very tough winter, I've been trying really hard to talk more with the guys, be more socially active, and be more involved in scrims, talking, and leading the game. That's what I'm trying to do. We’ve definitely been playing better in scrims. We’ve been winning more scrims than we did before, so it’s definitely been better. It’s still a little too weak, though, and it’s just really frustrating.

Given the team's struggles, what do you think is a realistic expectation for Rogue right now, and what are you hoping to achieve in spring or even summer? What's the optimal ceiling for the team?

Larssen: I'm always aiming for Worlds. Obviously, that seems a bit unrealistic right now with the way we’re playing, but I’ll always aim for Worlds because that’s where I want to be; it's been a while. But right now, we just need to win games in LEC. There’s not a bigger goal we can look at for now. We just need to win games in LEC. Next week, I think we have to go 2-0. That’s the only goal right now—just to win some games next week.

Next week, you'll be facing Vitality and GIANTX. GX isn’t looking great right now, while Vitality is a bit stronger. What are your expectations for these matches? Do you think both are winnable?

Larssen: Definitely. I think these first two weeks are extremely important for us because we're playing against opponents from the bottom tier teams. That's why it feels so hard right now. But I think next week is very winnable, and we need to win. It's tough... I'm still replaying that BDS game in my mind right now.

You've been a topic of discussion recently, especially regarding solo queue. You hit Challenger again for the first time in a while. What motivated you to grind back to Challenger? Was it to prove something to the critics?

Larssen: For sure, yeah. That's a big reason why; I wanted to prove them wrong. In 2022, I was 200 LP Master when I won LEC and went to quarterfinals at Worlds. To me, it didn’t matter too much. But I enjoyed making sure I got Challenger fast. It's more fun now as well. I get matches with more LEC players, so it makes the games more fun. So, it's a good end result for sure.

How would you evaluate yourself compared to other midlaners? Before last year, you were considered one of the best, but now some doubt has been cast on your performance. Where do you think you stand now?

Larssen: Right now, I’m in the bottom tier of midlaners with the way I’ve been playing the past year. I still believe in myself and think I can become a top-tier midlaner. That’s why I’m frustrated with myself today, because Game 3 is a game I should carry 10 out of 10 times. In the last soul fight, if I had used Flash and dodged Ambessa’s Ult like I should have, I think it was game over. I should’ve done that every time, and we would’ve won. So, that’s why I’m frustrated—I should have carried that game.

Recently, you’ve faced a lot of criticism, but you’ve also received a lot of support, like from Rogue fans on your birthday. How do you feel about social media and fan interactions? Does the spotlight bring pressure, or do you enjoy it?

Larssen: I don’t mind the hate or criticism; it’s understandable and people have the right to criticize me and the team for the past year. I think it’s correct. I actually enjoy it because it gives me more motivation. Seeing the haters just makes me want to prove them wrong.

There have been rumors about Rogue’s future as an organization. How do these rumors affect the team? Do you think they impact your gameplay, or is it something you don’t pay attention to?

Larssen: I think it’s a non-factor, and it should be. The only thing on our minds is playing good League of Legends and winning LEC games. It’s out of our control. The only thing we can control is doing our best in LEC.

You haven't played any BO5s yet, but as a player known for control mages, how do you think your style will hold up in longer series now that fearless play is being used year-round?

Larssen: I think this is really good for me because it forces me to not pick the same champion repeatedly. I play a lot of champions, and you can probably see that from my games. This setup makes it impossible to pick the same matchups over and over, which is good for me. My coach can’t just pick the same champions for me either. I know I can play every champion in the game really well, like Akali, LeBlanc, and others. So, I think it’s good for me because now I don’t have a choice but to play them.

Is there anything you'd like to say to the Rogue fans to close off?

Larssen: Yeah, especially since my birthday was yesterday. I got a lot of nice fan art and birthday wishes. Of course, I got some hate too, but the support really means a lot this year, and even last year when we’ve been struggling. It means way more than it used to. I used to take it for granted, but now, with everything we’re going through, it really matters. It’s heartwarming to see."