Although many LCS fans are already embracing him as a member of the league’s new era, TSM’s rookie Cheng “Soul” Luo has decided to return to TSM’s Academy team to continue his development as a professional League of Legends player.
The team said it was a mutual decision that stemmed from Soul’s desire to “accelerate his growth” as an LCS-ready talent.
As a result, veteran Colin “Solo” Earnest will be taking his place in the top lane, making TSM the sixth LCS team he has played for in his lengthy career.
On the team’s subreddit, TSM’s League assistant general manager Glen Yang explained that the coaching staff wanted Soul to use the remainder of the 2022 LCS Summer Split to gain experience at the region’s top level, but the prospect said he “[wants] TSM to make playoffs just as much as [the fans].”
According to Soul, at his current level, he believes he couldn’t deliver that goal and decided to return to Academy to hone his skills while giving the team a better chance. It is a sad ending to his first season in the LCS, but a respectable decision.
“Really grateful to TSM for giving me the opportunity to live my dream and play on the big stage,” Soul said. “Sorry to the fans, wish I could have shown better performances during my small time there. Time to scale in Academy, I’ll be back soon!”
TSM is currently in ninth place in the regular season standings with a disappointing 3-8 record, sitting just out of playoffs. With multiple roster changes and rookie replacements, the roster has struggled to find a steady baseline. With only three more weeks left to play, however, TSM’s window for a miracle run is closing fast.
Catch the perennial LCS champions in action again when they take the stage against Team Liquid’s veteran-heavy League superteam on Saturday, July 30 at 5:30pm CT.
