Sergey “hally” Shavaev, coach of Team Spirit’s CS2 roster, explained how decision-making works inside the club. According to Shavaev, he plays the decisive role in in‑game moments but emphasizes a collaborative approach: he listens to all sides, allows players to argue and only intervenes when they cannot reach a consensus.
On tactical matters during matches, Shavaev says the final word belongs to him. His method is to hear each side and give players room to debate if they disagree. He believes a successful team is made of like‑minded people who work through difficult situations together; when those discussions do not lead to a shared solution, he steps in and provides direction.
When it comes to the overall game structure and strategic framework, Shavaev takes primary responsibility while frequently discussing specifics with Leonid “chopper” Vishnyakov and occasionally with other players. He also welcomes individual initiative — if a player proposes trying something different, he is open to experimenting and seeing where it leads.
Decisions about substitutions and training processes are made in consultation with Team Spirit’s CEO, Nikita “Cheshir” Chukalin. Both men exchange opinions: Chukalin can present candidate players and Shavaev offers his view. Shavaev stressed that he can veto a signing — if the CEO prefers a player but the coach objects, that player will not be brought into the roster — though Chukalin may provide reasoned arguments to persuade him otherwise.
Hally recalled a moment when his stance on an upcoming change diverged from his colleagues’. After missing qualification for the Paris Major, the organisation was restructuring the roster; Shavaev says he initially supported a different option and found himself alone in that position. He, Leonid and Nikita debated the choice for about three hours, after which he sided with the others — a decision that, in hindsight, proved to be the right one.
Following the failure to reach the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023, Team Spirit underwent a significant reshuffle. Three players from the organisation’s academy — Danil “donk” Kryshkovets, Artem “ArtFr0st” Kharitonov and Miroslav “zont1x” Plakhotya — were promoted to the main lineup. They replaced Pavel “s1ren” Ogloblin, Igor “w0nderful” Zhdanov and Robert “Patsi” Isyanov. Shavaev did not specify which exact replacement he had been opposed to during earlier discussions.