luchov says confidence is driving his Counter-Strike 2 form as 9z chase Spodek berth

Luciano “luchov” Herrera said his Counter-Strike 2 form for 9z rises and falls with confidence, after the Argentine side steadied themselves at IEM Katowice and set their eyes on a playoff run in the Spodek arena.

Speaking to HLTV after 9z’s win over TYLOO, luchov said the team were feeling better on the server than they had in their previous outing, and that the result helped restore some of the belief that had been shaken by a difficult run through the summer and into the event. 9z are now 1-1 after two games in Katowice, with the stated goal of reaching the iconic indoor arena before they leave Poland.

The interview arrived at a point where luchov remains in the conversation for rookie of the year, even though his numbers have cooled in recent months. During 9z’s strong purple patch earlier in the year, he broke through on the tier-one stage and collected two EVP awards at PGL Astana and XSE Pro League. HLTV noted that he held a 1.20 rating over the first seven months of 2026, before that figure dipped to 0.95 since August.

Against TYLOO, though, the aggressive rifler looked far more like the player who had lit up the first half of the year, crossing the 2.00 rating mark in the match. For 9z, the performance also came after a period of frustration that included several group-stage exits following their strong summer.

Confidence has been central to luchov’s rise

Luchov told HLTV that his own game is tightly linked to how the team around him is functioning. When 9z are synced up, he said, that gives him the freedom and certainty to take the fights and make the decisions that suit his style. When the side is drifting apart, he feels that his play becomes more hesitant and can lead to the sort of mistakes that drag the whole team down.

“My play style really depends on confidence,” luchov told HLTV.

He added that 9z have been talking through the issues behind their recent slide and trying to address them together. The losses after the summer stood out because the team had been so successful earlier in the year, and luchov said the downturn affected everyone’s belief.

“That was really hard for our confidence, but we are leveling up now.”

On a more personal level, luchov said he is not yet back at the same level he showed during the opening months of the year. Even after a promising display against TYLOO, he stressed that one good match is not enough to say the issue is solved. The goal, he said, is to keep building toward playoff qualification.

9z are trying to fix the issues behind the slump

The 9z rifler pointed to two problems that have hurt the team since their strong stretch earlier in 2026. First, he said, other teams have begun studying 9z more closely. Second, he felt the team’s break after the summer left them individually below their best, and that carried into the team’s results.

According to luchov, the combination of those factors made the post-summer period much harder than the earlier portion of the year. The team’s first semester had been strong enough to raise expectations, but the run of poor finishes after the break made it difficult to maintain the same momentum.

That has left 9z in a familiar but delicate place at Katowice: close enough to keep their playoff hopes alive, but still needing more than one strong showing to fully reset the trajectory. HLTV’s interview made clear that the team have been discussing the problems internally rather than treating the downturn as a mystery.

Luchov said the squad are trying to work through what went wrong and make it better, with the expectation that cleaner team play will also help his own style return to form. In his telling, the issue is not just confidence in the abstract, but how connected the five players feel in a given match.

“When we are separate and disconnected, I usually take more bad decisions and play more anxious,” he said.

Spodek is the target, but 9z still have work to do

The immediate aim for 9z in Katowice is straightforward: qualify for the playoffs and earn a chance to play in Spodek, one of Counter-Strike’s most recognizable venues. Luchov made clear that reaching that arena is a target in itself, though he also said the team would want more if they get there.

That ambition comes with a caveat. The team have only played one match at the level they want so far, and luchov said the standard has to rise again if they are going to make the playoff cut. He framed the TYLOO result as a step in the right direction rather than proof that the problems are gone.

For now, 9z’s campaign in Poland sits at 1-1 after two matches, with the next phase set by how quickly they can turn one strong performance into a stable run. Luchov’s interview suggested that the answer may depend on whether 9z can keep their collective confidence high enough to support his aggressive style, rather than forcing him to carry it alone.

If they can do that, the rookie of the year contender could still be in position to end the event on one of Counter-Strike’s biggest stages. If not, 9z’s promising start to 2026 will remain defined by the gap between their best form and the version of themselves that has struggled since the summer break.