Device extends medical leave, NIP target Jackinho

NiP's star player, device will be extending his medical leave according to a joint report by Dexerto and 1pv.fr. After initially taking a short break for the end of the year, the Danish AWPer might be looking at a few more months away from the server.

This news comes after reports stated Device is looking for a move back to Astralis. The AWPer was quick to deny these rumors on Twitter. Nikolai further stated that he was dealing with mental health issues and needed time to recuperate. Following this, the organization completed the transfer of their previous AWPer Tim 'nawwk' Jonasson to Apeks.

Now with Device extending his medical leave, the org will be forced to use Young Ninjas player Love "⁠phzy⁠" Smidebrant at their 1 Groups campaign. Taking phzy's spot on the Academy roster will be former Fnatic player Jack "⁠Jackinho⁠" Ström Mattsson. The player has already played his first matches with the squad in the Malta Vibes Knockout 5 event.

NIP is reportedly interested in bringing Jackinho onto the main roster to fill for Device on a short-term deal. This seems like a peculiar move considering phzy performed well while filling for the roster in previous events. Jackinho on the other hand has been out of action since Fnatic signed the British AWPer Smooya.

Ninjas In Pyjamas commented on the report stating that Device will take longer to recuperate and phzy will be playing Blast Spring Groups instead.

Bringing Jackinho in will definitely be a blow to the team's aspirations. After the roster shuffle NIP was already looking much weaker. This move might push them out of the top 10. Stay tuned to Esports.gg to keep up with NIP and their run at Blast Premier Spring Groups.