anovelconsole Chapter 2: You're very professional, but we don't want you.
Chapter 2: You're very professional, but we don't want you.
Actually, it's not just these reasons; there are several other very important junctures at the moment.
Firstly, as one of the three major teams, EDG has been known for its consistently excellent performance since its inception.
However, EDG suffered a major setback in the 2019 Spring Split.
Although it's not particularly bad in the LPL, it's far from what it used to be.
Secondly, the coaching staff's drafting and tactical thinking were chaotic, their adaptation to the current version was slow, and they frequently picked lineups that could be countered. In addition, the team's core players were in poor form, with Scout and iBoy making frequent mistakes.
Normally, given EDG's standards and requirements, they might not even consider a tactical analyst like him who had just been fired by the team.
However, the team is currently in a slump and is at a critical juncture for further adjustments. In addition, he was dismissed because he dared to speak his mind and did not hide his shortcomings. He feels that he has a very good chance of joining EDG this time.
As Chen Song focused his gaze, the tall boy behind Clearlove walked over and said, "Coach, can I play in the practice match later?"
Before Heart could speak, Chen Song volunteered to translate: "He asked if I could play in the practice match later."
Heart responded in broken Chinese, "Kuo... Yi."
The tall boy clenched his fist excitedly and turned to leave.
"Is this a new team member?"
Looking at the tall boy's back, Chen Song asked.
"It's Jiejie, the jungler from the second team."
Heart paused, looking at Jiejie's back, her tone tinged with helplessness: "Clearlove's performance has been fluctuating too much lately, so we can only try bringing up the kids from the second team."
Following Heart, Chen Song entered the training room and stopped behind the player who played Riven.
He was playing Riven, and his lane opponent was Renekton.
It's clear that this player has a very high level of proficiency with Riven; he already solo-killed Renekton once at level three.
With her advantage, Riven became even more reckless, using her level advantage to push the crocodile out of the experience zone.
In the wave when Riven was about to reach level 6, she used EQ to get close to Renekton and bait out his E. At the same time, she took advantage of the distance and Renekton's E skill cooldown to reach level 6, flashed, and used her ultimate to burst down Renekton.
Having secured two solo kills against his opponent before reaching level six, the crocodile was completely outmatched.
Turning his head, he saw Heart and Chen Song staring at his screen. The player playing Riven seemed to be in a good mood and said, "Clearlove, my Riven is alright, right?"
"It's possible, but I can't participate in the competition."
Factory manager Clearlove tactfully replied, "Unless you can compete to raise pigs."
Upon hearing about raising pigs, Chen Song couldn't help but laugh out loud. He had seen the famous quote "Clearlove" online and laughed for quite a while.
This statement originated from a conflict between Clearlove and another professional player, GodV, during an early ranked match.
At the time, the two had an argument in the game, and Clearlove typed in the public chat to mock GodV: "You play so badly, why are you playing professionally? Go back to raising pigs!"
Because of its aggressive and vivid imagery, this statement quickly spread within the community.
Heart glanced at his phone, then turned and said, "Chen Song, please come with me."
……
Chen Song, led by Heart, arrived at an office not far from the training area.
The door was ajar. Heart knocked twice and then pushed the door open to enter.
Chen Song followed behind and immediately spotted the person sitting behind the desk.
He was wearing a polo shirt and round-framed glasses, and was looking down at a pile of documents.
It was Abu, the general manager and head coach of EDG.
Hearing the noise, he looked up, his gaze passing over Heart and landing directly on Chen Song.
"You're here?"
Abu's voice was neither loud nor soft as he gestured to the office sofa: "Have a seat."
After saying that, he got up and sat down on the single sofa next to Chen Song.
"Hello Chen Song, I've reviewed your resume. Coach Heart just gave you a tour; what was your overall impression?"
Abu speaks slowly and in a low voice.
As one of the founders of EDG, Abu cares a lot about how the outside world evaluates EDG.
For a team that consistently ranked in the top two in the regular season, their performance in the 2019 Spring Split was nothing short of a precipitous drop.
In Abramovich's eyes, such a result was simply a disgrace!
"Everything is fine." Chen Song looked directly at Abu and said calmly, "The club atmosphere, training environment, and player configuration are all very good. It's just that the Spring Split results were a bit too bad for EDG."
Chen Song hesitated for a moment before saying the last sentence.
After all, the scene of being fired by LNG for saying a few more words is still fresh in everyone's mind.
He worried that if he told the truth, he would be treated the same way again.
To be fair, the atmosphere and training environment at EDG are really good. As for the player lineup, he has studied it carefully and can't say it's bad. Rather, it's more like they're not quite adapted to the new meta and can't keep up with the game.
Abu's eyes lit up slightly, clearly not expecting Chen Song to be so straightforward, unlike ordinary job seekers who only talk in polite words.
He spoke slowly, his voice weary: "You're right. This year's Spring Split performance has not only dissatisfied the fans, but also me, the coaching staff, and the entire club."
"After so many years of development, this is the first time EDG has fallen out of the top tier. This is not the level we should be at."
Realizing he had gotten a little emotional, Abu quickly composed himself and changed the subject: "What do you think is EDG's biggest problem right now?"
Chen Song paused for a few seconds, quickly summarized his thoughts on EDG over the past few days, and slowly said: "First of all, they are rigid in their adaptation to the version. This year's Spring Split version is more inclined towards fast-paced offense, jungle confrontation, and mid-jungle synergy, but EDG is still clinging to the old ideas of conservative operation and late-game team fights."
BP always tries to play it safe, but ends up being led by the meta, repeatedly picking lineups that can be countered, and thus falling into a passive position in the early game.
Secondly, the players' mentality and roles were out of balance. Scout and iBoy, as the core of the team, were full of confidence when they were doing well. After a series of losses, their mentality collapsed, their performance naturally deteriorated, they made more and more mistakes, and became more and more restrained.
Finally, there's the issue of a generational gap in the team's development. Clearlove, as a veteran and key player for EDG, has undoubtedly made significant contributions. However, his current performance is too inconsistent to sustain the team. The current EDG team lacks effective synergy across its top, mid, and bot lanes, operating independently and completely lacking the resilience that the EDG team once possessed.
Abu remained expressionless, his gaze fixed on Chen Song, his tone calm: "I highly value your professional abilities. However, you are currently somewhat mismatched with the current EDG, so..."
He walked back to his desk, picked up Chen Song's resume, and handed it back to him.
"I'm sorry, we can't offer you this position at the moment."
Seeing Chen Song take the resume and remain silent, Abu looked at him and suddenly added, "Not passing the interview doesn't mean I'm rejecting you; I hope you understand that."
"Thanks!"
He could just take these polite workplace remarks with a grain of salt; he'd said them to others countless times in his past life, but he never expected them to come back to haunt him in this one.
As Chen Song walked out of the EDG club, he took out his phone. Before he could even press the unlock button, his phone suddenly vibrated, and a brand new message caught his attention.
"Mr. Chen Song, hello! This is the HR department of IG Esports Club. Your application for the Tactical Analyst position has passed the initial screening, and we would like to invite you to an interview."
……