Natus Vincere have punched their ticket to the IEM Cologne 2025 playoffs with a convincing 2-0 win over FaZe Clan, sending shockwaves through the bracket and crowning a milestone debut for Drin “makazze” Shaqiri. The young Kosovar not only made his mark with key plays but also sealed his first-ever LANXESS appearance in style.
Cologne 2025Germany, Cologne, LANXESS arena
Team Spirit
MOUZ
Natus Vincere
“To be honest, I’m shaking a little bit because of emotions,” makazze told stunna in the post-match interview — and who could blame him?
Map Recap: Ancient (13-4), Inferno (13-10)
This wasn’t just a win — it was a statement. NAVI tore through FaZe on Ancient with clinical defense and relentless control. From the get-go, the CIS squad flipped the script from their narrow upper-bracket loss. This time, FaZe couldn’t rally back. Their early defaults were systematically shut down, and mid-map pressure? Non-existent, thanks to makazze and iM holding firm in Middle while b1t shut the door on B-site access.
Despite a pistol round win, FaZe collapsed after losing the force-buy. The AK handed to iM was a turning point — the Romanian rifler was untouchable. Two of FaZe’s three rounds came only through vintage karrigan heroics, but it wasn’t enough. The half ended in a disaster for FaZe, staring at an unscalable 3-9 mountain.
Inferno: Comeback Attempt Denied
Inferno started promisingly for FaZe. Multi-kills from rain and broky had them 4-0 up. But NAVI bounced back fast. A triple kill from b1t on a pivotal 2v3 turned the tide, and by halftime, NAVI had leveled the score. From there, it was all momentum. A force-buy in Round 14 — triggered by FaZe walking into pistols — saw NAVI leap to a 12-7 lead.
FaZe’s lifeline? A miraculous 3v5 turnaround off a half-buy. But even that flicker was extinguished as iM anchored B in Round 23 with cold-blooded composure to seal the deal.
EliGE Hits New Low on Ancient
Notably, Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski endured his worst map in a FaZe jersey. A 3-16 K-D and 0.28 rating on Ancient marks a new statistical low. While he somewhat redeemed himself on Inferno (1.19 rating, 18-17 K-D), the damage was already done — FaZe were out, and NAVI were marching on.
What’s Next?
NAVI advance to the IEM Cologne quarter-finals where they’ll face The MongolZ on August 1st. With makazze firing on all cylinders and the core looking sharp, can they make the run all the way to the LANXESS trophy?
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