LOUD captain Matias ‘Saadhak’ Delipetro has expressed his happiness at seeing his former teammate Erick ‘aspas’ Santos join Leviatán’s Valorant team ahead of the 2024 VCT season.
Leviatán have signed aspas to a two-year contract in one of the biggest transfers of the Valorant off-season. The 20-year-old duelist was a highly sought-after player after two impressive years with LOUD and had offers from all three VCT regions.
aspas’ departure leaves LOUD with big shoes to fill for the 2024 VCT season. The Brazilian organization has reportedly set its sights on ex-FURIA player Gabriel ‘qck’ Lima after initially weighing up moves for players like Ilan ‘havoc’ Eloy and Gustavo ‘GuhRVN’ Ferreira.
Saadhak has made no secret of the fact that it will be impossible for LOUD to find a player who is a perfect replacement for aspas. “We don’t need to find a new aspas because there’s only one,” he recently said. Despite the abundance of talented duelists in Brazil, he is looking for a flexible player who has good macro awareness and game sense and is not merely an aim machine.
Replacing one of the best players in the scene is no easy task, but Saadhak has made it clear that he bears no ill feelings towards aspas.
“If I’m proud [of aspas]? Of course I am,” he said on his stream. “You have to understand that, for me, all this is crazy. We picked him from ranked and we won Champions together.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
“It’s the same thing I have to say about Sacy. I am very happy that they’re in a place where they’re happy. We went through so much together. We went through a lot of sh*t. We also had some very happy moments, and some very tough moments.
“I am very happy that he is continuing his career and that he is going after what he thinks is the best option for him and his family. I hope he continues to grow.”
aspas is the first off-season signing by Leviatán, who reached the quarter-finals of VCT LOCK//IN but could not qualify for either VCT Masters Tokyo or Valorant Champions 2023.
The LATAM giants still have one more player slot to fill after parting ways with Fabian ‘Shyy’ Usnayo and Vicente ‘Tacolila’ Compagnon, and remain on the lookout for a new coach to replace Rodrigo ‘Onur’ Dalmagro.
Keep track of all the changes in the Valorant scene with our off-season rostermania tracker.