FURIA benches Skullz, brings in Yekinder as CS2 roster stand-in

FURIA has officially confirmed Felipe “⁠skullz⁠” Medeiros’s benching, clearing space for Mareks “⁠Yekinder” Gaļinskis, who’s stepping away from Team Liquid’s bench after warming it for four months.

FURIA continues its apparent roster overhaul just in time for the BLAST.tv Austin Major. Earlier, the team made its first move towards going international by dropping Marcelo “⁠chelo⁠” Cespedes to pick up Kazakhstani AWPer Danil “⁠molodoy⁠” Golubenko. While fans were still processing that bold decision, FURIA doubled down on its international ambitions by grabbing Yekinder straight off of Team Liquid’s bench.

Yekinder will stand in for FURIA for BLAST.tv Austin Major as well as any events and competitions played between now and then, the organization announced on social media.

FURIA recruits Yekinder as stand-in

Yekinder and skullz once shared a six-month stint together at Team Liquid, which ended FURIA when picked up skullz in 2024 and Liquid benched Yekinder after he struggled to replicate his explosive form last seen at Virtus.pro. Brought in as an entry fragger, Yekinder was also handed in-game leadership duties briefly after  Nick “⁠nitr0⁠” Cannella’s temporary retirement in 2023.

Whether it was the role shift or Team Liquid’s overall slumping form, Yekinder’s performance continued to decline. TL failed to qualify for the PGL Copenhagen Major, which ended up setting the tone for what was a rough year of play. After nearly two years of mixed results, Yekinder was finally sent to the bench by Liquid in December 2024.

With two new players now on its payroll, FURIA hopes to find some momentum after what was a shaky 2024 in which the team failed to post many notable results. If Yekinder manages to somehow tap into his Virtus.pro form while playing for a new side, then the team may finally have the firepower it’s been missing to make a deep run at the BLAST.tv Austin Major.

FURIA’s roster after Yekinder’s addition:

• Gabriel “⁠FalleN⁠” Toledo
• Yuri “⁠yuurih⁠” Santos
• Kaike “⁠Kscerato” Cerato
• molodoy⁠
• Yekinder
• Sid “⁠sidde⁠” Macedo

With Yekinder’s addition to the team, FURIA will be just one signing away from going fully international after maintaining a Brazilian core for the most part in the last eight years. The new roster will debut at PGL Astana 2025 on May 10.