Fnatic decide to bench Rekkles after role change

Fnatic has not had a dream 2023 season, no more, no less. The legendary EMEA team have not performed as well as desired, and, in the last few hours, they announced the news that undoubtedly shocked many fans.

After failing to meet expectations in both the Winter and Spring Split of the LEC, Fnatic decided to bench the legend of the game, Martin “Rekkles” Larsson, because the player announced through his Twitter account that he would change his role in the game.

While the news of Rekkles’ role change surprised fans of the player, the team, and the league in general, the fact that Fnatic benched him shocked many people.

Fnatic bench Rekkles after announcing role change

Legendary LEC and Team Black&Orange AD Carry, Rekkles announced that he is changing his role within Summoner’s Rift to Support.

As a result of this announcement by Rekkles, the organization has made the unexpected decision to send the player to the bench. In addition, he will not be in the team’s starting lineup heading into the LEC Summer Split 2023.

On the other hand, many rumors point to Rekkles’ time in what has been his home for many years, most likely over.

According to Rekkles’ explanation for his role change, it’s all due to the legend’s poor performance in the first two Splits of the 2023 season. Rekkles says he is “treading water” as AD Carry, so he needs a role change to get back to his best.

There is no doubt that Rekkles, Fnatic, and the rest of the guys in the lineup have been fighting hard to improve the team’s results. However, the team has not only missed the playoffs in both Splits, but in the first one (Winter Split), they didn’t even qualify for the Group Stage, something that has never happened in the organization’s history.

Fnatic are looking for a replacement for Rekkles

In addition to announcing the situation regarding the LEC legend, Fnatic announced that they intend to look for a replacement for Rekkles in the AD Carry position. Therefore, we can only assume that Henk “Advienne” Reijenga, Fnatic’s current Support, will remain with the team.

On the other hand, it is not clear if Fnatic will want to keep a player like Rekkles in the organization, which, without a doubt, maybe somewhat expensive considering that he will be relegated to the bench. In addition, Rekkles’ contract with the organization is valid until the end of 2024, so the only possibilities for Fnatic to get rid of the player are for another team to pay the transfer or release him, something that is unlikely to happen.

The Support role is not new for Rekkles

While it is true that this role change has surprised many in the community, Rekkles has played on several occasions as Support in the LEC. In the 2018 season, the legendary player showed great attributes with Janna, Karma, and Sona.

However, it is still unclear what the future holds for Rekkles, when he will start playing as Support in official or competitive matches and under which banner he will do so. But Fnatic stressed that they would support the player’s transition as much as possible.

On the other hand, the start date of the Summer Split 2023 has not been announced yet, so Fnatic has enough time to think about what they will do regarding Rekkles. Also, if they plan to look for a new player, they will likely get him in approximately five weeks, when the last Split of the season is expected to start.

Header: Riot Games