‘He was becoming a bit disconnected’: G2 CEO explains m0NESY’s departure ahead of historic CS transfer

Counter-Strike superstar Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov is officially departing G2 Esports, as confirmed by the organization’s CEO Alban Dechelotte.

Following G2’s second-place finish behind Team Falcons at PGL Bucharest, Dechelotte announced on X (formerly Twitter) m0NESY’s exit and pending trade to another team. Although he didn’t explicitly name the destination, reports have been making rounds for weeks pointing to the historic transfer of m0NESY to the Saudi Arabia-based organization Team Falcons.

“Rumors are true. We have decided to accept the trade of our young GOAT of CS. I can only ask you to direct your feedback to me and not to the CS management, staff, or players as this was a decision on org-level,” Dechelotte said.

With m0NESY’s contract set to expire in December this year, Dechelotte said they opted to make a decision early for their CS2 squad, grabbing the opportunity to rebuild the roster through the trade rather than risk losing the 19-year-old Russian AWPer for nothing. He also shed light on the internal dynamics leading to the move.

“It was obvious that he was becoming a bit disconnected from the rest of the team due to his situation and it was very difficult to have meaningful conversations with potential talents without the clarity around his future,” he said.

Much of that disconnect is believed to stem from the departure of Nikola “NiKo” Kovač, who was m0NESY’s teammate in G2 for almost three years before the former jumped to Falcons at the start of 2025. Despite m0NESY’s consistent individual brilliance, G2 struggled in recent tournaments, failing to secure a single title across five events, including a disappointing 9th-12th place finish at IEM Katowice.

Now, m0NESY is expected to reunite with NiKo on Team Falcons, replacing Abdulkhalik “degster” Gasanov. His debut with the new roster is set for IEM Melbourne, which starts on April 21. According to neL of Croissant Strike, m0NESY’s transfer is valued in the multi-million dollar range, making it the most expensive player move in Counter-Strike history.

In a short message on his Telegram channel and X account, the Russian player expressed his gratitude to G2 and the fans who supported him and the team. Throughout his stint with G2, m0NESY won six championships, including the BLAST Premier World Final, two IEM trophies last year, and multiple MVP awards.