The sniper for Vitality, Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut, shared his thoughts on the victory over NAVI in the IEM Cologne 2024 finals. In an interview with HLTV, Herbaut mentioned that while he and his teammates could have played better, they are ultimately pleased with the result.
"It was an incredible final, to be honest. I've never played in such a final before, and we finally won it. Yes, it’s amazing. We’re simply happy. Everyone’s smiling right now, and that’s great. I just want to thank my teammates because they played well too. It was a great final."
"I think we played a good game, but we could have done better. It's a final, and the pressure is much higher here. At times, we weren’t playing our game. But in the end, we won. We’ll review the match and discuss the mistakes we made. But in the end, we’re just happy we won."
ZywOo also commented on earning yet another MVP title at the tournament – marking the 20th accolade in the French esports player's career.
"If I get one more MVP title, I’ll be on the same level [as s1mple]. To be honest, I do think about it, but at the same time, I don’t care. It’s strange because I don’t think about winning the MVP title every time I play at a tournament. Obviously, on the last day [of the tournament], I do think about it, but when I’m with the team, I’m not focused on it. I just do my thing, and play for the team. That’s all."
The IEM Cologne 2024 tournament took place from 7th to 18th August in Cologne, Germany, featuring 24 teams. The total prize pool was $1 million, with Vitality securing $400,000 for first place, along with spots at IEM Katowice 2025 and the BLAST Premier World Final 2024.