FURIA C0M: "On any kind of team, I'd get the same kind of criticism"

At the center of one of the most talked about roster moves in the Brazilian VALORANT community, Daniel "C0M" Lee opened up about joining FURIA and the pressure that comes with replacing a player like Daniel "eeiu" Vucenovic. In an exclusive interview with THESPIKE Brazil, the North American player admitted that he has been the target of negative comments after the move, but denied that these were solely related to replacing such a well-liked player in the scene.

"I think there's pressure. When you make a change like this, especially involving someone the community generally loves, it's something controversial, and I'm in the middle of it, right? But, for me, it's something that comes with competition. I think that on any kind of team, I'd get the same kind of criticism I'm getting now."

Despite the negative comments, C0M doesn't view all of the criticism strictly as a bad thing. In fact, it's all a part of the player he is today, as well as the one he still strives to become.

"It's honestly fun, in a way. I'm trying to think of exactly what I mean. I'm going through different kinds of pressure, but they're all healthy pressures. They're things that are going to make me grow, you know?"

New Team, New C0M

Criticism or not, C0M revealed he's actually excited about the new phase he's experiencing with FURIA on an individual level. Though the team has lost the two matches they have played since C0M's arrival, the player revealed he has more freedom to play a style that is not solely tied to helping out his teammates, as he was known to do for other teams.

"I've also learned to be more myself as an individual. Obviously, that's connected to consistency, because I think I get stuck in that mindset of playing for the team, playing for the team, playing for the team, when I could be doing a lot more individually. Just hitting headshots, I think, stuff like that. So I think it's something I'm learning little by little. It's pretty liberating for me, as an individual, because I don't think I've played like this in years."

This new playstle, in the player's own words, is "a healthy thing" for him. With that in mind, C0M admitted that he doesn't want to focus only on "taking the blame" for the team when things aren't going their way in upcoming matches. Instead, his goal is to focus on his own individual side of things and not worry so much about problems that are not his concern.

"Not trying, in a way, to fix every situation. I'd say that because I'm the type of person who... I want to take responsibility if it's losses, individual rounds, or things like that. And... I think it's just a matter of... I need to not do that, and just be myself. Not worry about it. Not stress over the little things."

After three consecutive losses, this has been far from the start FURIA were hoping for at VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Americas Stage 2. Now, C0M and the rest of the squad have only two more matches remaining to turn things around before the Group Stage draws to a close.

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Featured image credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games