Astralis sniper Nicolai "device" Reedtz commented on the defeat of the revamped squad featuring Kasper "cadiaN" Møller in their debut match. In an interview during the BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2024 broadcast, he acknowledged that the recent scandal surrounding the team affected the players' state of mind.
The first map against Team Vitality ended with a score of 13-0 in favour of Dan "apEX" Madesclaire's team. On the following map, device's team managed to secure only four rounds.
"It seems I’ve lost for the first time without winning a single round. It’s disappointing. We just couldn’t showcase our game. Yes, we won a few rounds on Dust2, but overall... karma wasn’t on our side. We couldn’t react to our opponents’ moves as the rounds progressed.
Sometimes this happens. It’s just one match. It won’t break our team. But yes, it’s far from the debut we were hoping for."
Before the start of BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2024, Astralis found itself at the centre of controversy as the organisers allowed the team to play with cadiaN instead of the initially announced Alexander "br0" Bro.
"I’d be lying if I said that the situation surrounding the team hasn’t affected us. I mentioned karma earlier... We’re just players, and comments keep coming our way. The team needs to stay strong and show character. We wanted to do that in the game, but we couldn’t. Right now, we can only support each other and prepare for the next match."