After an eventful season and early exit from the 2023 World Championship, Fnatic is ready to make a championship-winning push next year with a rising League of Legends prospect.
Fnatic is committing to Óscar “Oscarinin” Muñoz Jiménez as the team’s starting top laner for the new year, the organization announced today. The 20-year-old rookie joined the organization during the 2023 LEC Spring Split and helped the team slowly improve from a ninth-place finish in the first split to becoming a finalist at the 2023 Season Finals against G2 Esports.
Oscarinin did deal with a small hiccup during the year when he suffered a hand injury that required surgery to fix, causing him to drop out of the playoffs to recuperate. Even with his sudden absence, Fnatic managed to scratch and claw their way to the finals against G2, where they were taken down by their perpetual rivals in four games.
The rookie eventually made it back to stage play during Worlds 2023, but even his return couldn’t stem Fnatic’s losing ways at the tournament against LPL representatives. With three losses to LNG Esports, Bilibili Gaming, and Weibo Gaming, the team missed the knockout stage alongside every other LEC team at the event, pushing them into an early offseason.
Although he does need a bit more experience under his belt, Oscarinin has shown potential to be a rock in the top lane for Fnatic. He was frequently placed on tank champions like Ornn and Poppy, but he could be given a bit more space to work with next year on other carry picks in his champion pool, such as Gangplank, Gwen, and Rumble.
Fnatic also has three other players under contract through the new year, including Humanoid, Razork, and LEC AD carry prospect Oh “Noah” Hyeon-taek, meaning the org could already have a majority of its starting roster locked in for the upcoming year.
Published: Nov 28, 2023 02:31 pm