Cloud9 (C9) and Luka “Perkz” Perkovic have officially parted ways, according to an official announcement from the LCS team on Friday. The star mid laner will head back to Europe after just a one-season stint in North America. C9 did not release word yet on who will be brought in to replace Perkz.
When C9 brought in Perkz with a huge buyout from LEC team G2 Esports, fans expressed a lot of excitement about the move. After all, a large part of the community will generally consider Perkz as one of the best, if not the best, Western player in recent history. He famously helped catapult G2 Esports to a Worlds finals and was known for showing up in the clutch.
Meanwhile, C9 has built history of hovering around the top spots in the LCS. However, the team has also experienced recent ups-and-downs with making Worlds and clinching local titles. Looking to get back to the top of the league, C9 fans thought that the acquisition of Perkz sounded very promising—and hopefully worth the price tag.
Perkz and C9's performance in the 2021 season is hotly debated throughout the community. On the one hand, the C9 roster had a huge ceiling. On their best days, they looked nigh unstoppable. But the problem remained to be their inconsistency, something that has plagued the team in recent memory. Perkz emerged as a bit of an enigma on the team, being part of some mistakes and misplays yet also putting up highlight reels and game-defining moves.
Ultimately, though, Cloud9 got what they asked for in retaking the LCS title at least for the Spring split. Though they fell short during the Summer split playoffs, fans will remember C9's gauntlet run to clinch a 2021 Worlds spot and the heart-stopping 3-2 series wins. Moreover, the NA squad also pulled off a miracle run through the Worlds group stage. They were the only team from the region to qualify for knockouts, though ended up crashing out in the quarterfinals.
Now Perkz will look to return to European soil. He can definitely hold his head high for a good performance the past year, despite the team's struggles. His legacy with C9—however short it was—at least should not feel too tainted. Sources say that the mid laner will be joining Team Vitality.
Meanwhile, on C9's end, they are still looking for a mid lane replacement. The management already ruled out former TSM star Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg, who will likely join Team Liquid. Fans are speculating whether the team could sensationally bring back Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer or Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen. However, either player might also end up not playing competitively in 2022. Other potential options include MAD Lions' Marek “Humanoid” Brázda, though he's also been linked to a move elsewhere.
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