Alphari returns to Liquid’s starting LCS roster, will share playing time with Jenkins in week 6 of 2021 LCS Summer Split

He's back.
Photo via Riot Games

After spending almost the entire 2021 Summer Split away from competitive play, Team Liquid’s superstar top laner Alphari is finally set to come back to the team’s main LCS roster for week six of the season, the organization announced today.

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In the latest episode of Liquid’s seasonal vlog “SQUAD,” the team’s current head coach Jonas “Kold” Andersen said Alphari isn’t the definitive starter just yet because he’ll still be sharing playing time with Jenkins. Whichever player “gives the highest possibility of winning” will get to play on stage. Kold is also excited to see Alphari in good spirits and to see how well he’ll be able to bounce back.

Alphari was benched after the first game of the season in a move that surprised many League of Legends fans and analysts alike. There was plenty of speculation around the possible reasons for the move, which continued to swirl through the first half of the split since Liquid failed to provide any explanations or transparency behind the decision.

Near the end of June, however, the team finally explained that Alphari had been going through “major health and family issues” and said “the symptoms associated with these issues were him questioning his motivation to play and his enjoyment of playing League.” As a result, the 21-year-old star was given a personal break until Sunday, June 27.

This news was followed by the team announcing the resignation of its head coach Jatt, who decided to step down from the team of his own accord. The organization also revealed that veteran jungler Santorin was temporarily stepping back from pro play due to lingering health issues that had been bothering him since the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational. In his place, Academy jungler Armao has stepped up to fill his shoes for the time being.

Liquid are sitting in fourth place right now with an 8-7 record. The team has been missing the firepower that Alphari brought to the top lane back in the 2021 Spring Split. But with him back in the lineup, confidence levels should be sky high once more for both their players and fans.

You can watch Liquid in action today when they face off against Team Dignitas at 9pm CT.


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Author
Tyler Esguerra
Lead League of Legends writer for Dot Esports. Forever an LCS supporter, AD carry main, with more than five years in the industry. Sometimes I like clicking heads in Call of Duty or VALORANT. Creator of the Critical Strike Podcast.