TACO on Imperial clash: "It's very difficult to play against your friends"

Epitacio "⁠TACO⁠" de Melo's 00NATION claimed a win against Isurus to secure a fixture against his old teammates from Imperial.

The start of IEM Road to Rio 2022 Americas RMR was rough on the Brazilian squad headlined by TACO and Marcelo "⁠coldzera⁠" David as they failed to convert a 14-7 advantage against 9z.

In the 0-1 match, 00NATION faced off against Isurus and successfully recovered from a shaky start to close Inferno 16-10 on the T side. Their 1-1 record means the veteran Brazilian duo will compete against Imperial on Thursday, facing their old teammates from SK and Luminosity.

TACO is confident about 00NATION's chances to reach the Major

Following the end of the last match on Wednesday, TACO sat down with HLTV to talk about 00NATION's poor start to the tournament, their preparation coming into the Swedish event, and his thoughts regarding the Brazilian derby against Imperial.

Congrats on the win TACO. You are 1-1 now, but I assume you'll be a little bit disappointed with your performance in the first game. You were 14-7, talk me through that game, how did it all go down so quickly?

I think we had a good preparation for this game, but we kind of lost ourselves in the middle of the map. I would blame myself for that as the in-game leader. I think that I could have changed the pace a little bit during the game.

We were playing kind of fast at the beginning and everything was working out for us, but after some rounds, I could have changed the pace of the game and a little bit of the game plan. I felt my team was a little bit nervous as well, it was the first match of the tournament, and it meant a lot for us to be here.

I mean, it also brings a lot of pressure, so I would say that it's normal even though we were not happy with the result of the match. We just reset and knew that we had another best-of-one to play, so we just forgot about the [first] game. We talked about Isurus and I think that we had a good game plan. I'm very proud of my teammates, they kept their composure and everyone played great, and everyone was happy playing. I think now the pressure is gone.

Read more TACO: "[coldzera and I] had a talk about stuff we didn't want to repeat from the past"

try had a really good CT side in the first match. You previously mentioned on HLTV Confirmed that he was not initially part of the plans for the new 00NATION, would you mind expanding on that?

try was not very happy playing with the old 00NATION lineup and when they started to talk to us about bringing the core of GODSENT, he just wanted to go back home and take some time for himself and do something else, consider some offers, and see what he could do for his future.

After some time we had a chat, and we talked about a lot of stuff. In the end, he was really happy with what he heard and with the core of GODSENT going to 00NATION. He put everything he has into this project and he's happy here with everyone. Right now it's a new phase of his career, and I'm doing my best in helping in whatever I can. He's super young and he still needs experience. He just turned 18 and he has a long way to go, but he's already a star and a great AWPer, the future is bright for him.

At least it's not an elimination match Epitacio "⁠TACO⁠" de Melo about Imperial clash

You mentioned some nerves in the first game, was there something similar in the second map? Because there it was you and coldzera, the veterans, that were fragging out, while the youngsters were a bit quieter.

The beginning of the game was kind of difficult because we lost some eco rounds and force buys, and then we won another one, and then we lost another one as well. It was kind of messy, I would say. I think we were really relaxed and calm, the comms were really good and that's how I like to play CS. I was feeling very comfortable in this match, and having a good game plan helped a lot. I would say the team played great, I don't think it was a matter of me and coldzera popping out. I think we definitely had a good game, I had my mind in the right place for the second match.

Tomorrow you are playing against Imperial. I talked to FalleN earlier today and he said that every time you play against each other, it's a "magical match." Are you looking forward to it? And what are you like expecting from the game tomorrow?

Well, it's definitely going to be a great match, I think they are doing great. They got chelo, who is a good player and FalleN seems like he's back to his old form — he's playing really great. I am just happy that we are in this moment, of course, it's very difficult to play against your friends and I would not like it for them to be eliminated from this tournament, and at least it's not an elimination match.

In the end it's a competition and we are going to do all we can to beat them tomorrow. I am expecting a great game. The last best-of-three we played was not easy, it could have gone both ways, and tomorrow we are going to be fully focused and in full force to try and beat them.

In my mind, it's just a matter of time until we become a great team Epitacio "⁠TACO⁠" de Melo

You mentioned your match from IEM Cologne. After that game, you talked about how you felt like 00NATION was moving in the right direction, do you still feel that way now, considering the shaky performances today?

Yeah, I feel more than ever that we are just ready and that we are we have the potential to get there. I'm very satisfied with the work of everyone on the team, starting from our staff and psychologists, and everyone that is helping us out with this project. We are all on the same page and I'm just glad that I have the chance to guide these great guys and great players, and to be in a project that even though it's a long-term one, I think we can accomplish great things together. The potential is there and we just need to work, and we are doing that.

In my mind, it's just a matter of time until we become a great team. We are not there yet, we still have a lot to work is to a lot of experience to gain as a team. It's only our third tournament together but yeah, I'm very happy with how things are going for us and I still believe that we have a great potential to get where we want.

So do you think qualifying for the Major is well within your means?

I think we have a good chance to qualify for the Major. That's obviously that's what everyone says, but I'm confident. I think we had a great period of practice, we did everything we could do to be in good form for this tournament.

That's what makes me calm and relaxed because if I could give 200% in this last month of practice, I did. I am just relaxed and comfortable, I am feeling good because I did everything I could to come to the tournament prepared. That's how I felt about my teammates too. Everyone is just calm and we know why we want. It's a long tournament and we are not worried about being 1-1 or 0-2 or whatever, we have BO3s to play so let's go step-by-step, and I think we can do it.

SK #21 Epitacio 'TACO' de MeloMarcelo 'coldzera' DavidGabriel 'FalleN' ToledoFernando 'fer' AlvarengaRicardo 'boltz' Prass Marcelo 'coldzera' David Age: 27 Team: 00NATION Rating 1.0: 1.15 Maps played: 1431 KPR: 0.77 DPR: 0.62 Imperial #21 Gabriel 'FalleN' ToledoFernando 'fer' AlvarengaRicardo 'boltz' PrassMarcelo 'chelo' CespedesVinicius 'VINI' Figueiredo Epitacio 'TACO' de Melo Age: 27 Team: 00NATION Rating 1.0: 0.92 Maps played: 1428 KPR: 0.61 DPR: 0.64 Isurus #89 Nicolás 'Noktse' DávilaRoberto 'reversive' ThemthamIgnacio 'meyern' MeyerMarcos 'deco' AmatoLuciano 'luchov' Herrera Luminosity Epitacio 'TACO' de MeloMarcelo 'coldzera' DavidGabriel 'FalleN' ToledoFernando 'fer' AlvarengaLincoln 'fnx' Lau 00NATION #29 Epitacio 'TACO' de MeloMarcelo 'coldzera' DavidEduardo 'dumau' WolkmerBruno 'latto' RebelattoSantino 'try' Rigal 9z #50 Maximiliano 'max' GonzalezFranco 'dgt' GarciaDavid 'dav1deuS' Tapia MaldonadoLucas 'nqz' SoaresNicolás 'buda' Kramer

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