After Los Ratones’ victory over SK Gaming during the final week of the LEC Versus regular season, LR’s Head Coach Jakob ‘YamatoCannon’ Mebdi took the time to look back on the overall level of the league, his role within Los Ratones, and the direction he sees for himself moving forward.
Big win today against SK Gaming, a direct rival for playoffs. How was the best-of backstage for you and for the coaching staff?
YamatoCannon: You could see in the game that there was a lot of tension. In a Bo1 like this, everyone could feel the pressure. I could see it on the enemy side and on our side too. For me, I didn’t really feel joy. I kind of took it for granted that we were going to win.
When you compete and you still have things to do, the experience becomes very internalized. Just because we have a match tomorrow, I don’t really feel anything besides the job. Maybe I’ll feel the joy in three or four years about what we’ve done. For now, I’m just focused on the job. Backstage, I was cool as a cucumber.
The early game was rough for LR, but your team fighting is always strong, and that Baron call was almost T1-level. Did you practice that specifically?
YamatoCannon: No, it’s hard to practice things like that in particular. We’re at the mercy of our scrim opponents, and scrimming hasn’t become that advanced. It’s more about getting to those positions in scrims, reviewing them, going through them, and paying attention diligently. [Baron] Nashor changed a lot with the new season, and the turrets too. It took time for us, and for other teams as well, to figure out the potential of Baron. I feel like we’re in a good place now when it comes to our mid to late game.
You’re playing Vitality tomorrow, and a win would be really important. Have you had the chance to study them, and what’s your honest take on Vitality?
YamatoCannon: [Team] Vitality is a team I respect because they shoot from the hip. They’re very willing to take fights, and that’s a skill that’s going to help them in the long run. Sometimes they throw, but to even be in a position to have a lead in the first place is something you have to respect. They also have a very unique take on the meta.
They have champions that really work in their hands. We played Aurelion Sol, they played Aurelion Sol. They have very specific picks that they’re good at, so we’re going to prep for them with full respect. And I’m facing my old homie Humanoid, so of course I want to mess things up.
Photo Credit: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games
Players get to shine on the Rift, but coaches don’t as much. How would you rate your performance so far this split?
YamatoCannon: My job is very unique because I only have one split. I’ve taken a very humanitarian approach. I’ve created space for each person to be themselves, and that’s the most important thing. I’ve set things up so I can support them and uplift them. In terms of draft prep and reading the enemy, I feel pretty good. I’ve taken a lot of good risks and gambles. There are moments like the NAVI game where we can do better, of course, but I’m happy with how the team is progressing and how comfortable the players seem to be in the environment. That was the main goal.
I didn’t come here to uproot everything or change every person. I came here to uplift them, make them feel comfortable, while competing in the LEC and pushing them to higher highs. I feel like we’ve done that really well.
I also want to shout out Caedrel and Shaves (Los Ratones’ assistant coach). As a coaching staff, we work so well together. It feels amazing to know you can always trust the other people on the staff.
If I say, “Caedrel, can you speak to this guy and figure it out?”, I know he’s going to say all the right things.
Riot recently changed the pick and side selection system at the start of the year. With all the data we have now, what’s your take on it and how much does it impact drafts?
YamatoCannon: I think it adds another layer and makes things more fair, which is important. In terms of side selection, there are a lot of strategies I can’t really go into, especially with Bo3s coming up. It becomes a kind of rock-paper-scissors situation. Some teams choose a side because they predict what the enemy wants to pick, and you can find double advantages that way. That’s also a way to be a bit devious, but I can’t say much more than that.
Photo Credit: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games
You’re already talking about BO3s. Do you see yourself in playoffs?
YamatoCannon: Yeah. The only scenario where we don’t make it is pretty absurd. We’re going to beat [Team] Vitality in the opening game, and we want to keep things in our own hands. We don’t want to rely on anyone else.
Several members of LR mentioned that after four losses, nobody wanted to scrim you. Did teams start booking scrims again after your four consecutive wins?
YamatoCannon: Not everybody, but it got a bit better. Early on, I understand why teams didn’t book us. We scrimmed almost everyone during bootcamp and early January, except a few teams like MKOI and KC. Also, teams higher in the standings wanted to scrim Fearless, and we were still in a Bo1 mindset, so that wasn’t very useful for us. But this week, our scrim schedule was better. We played against one locked playoff team, which was a big step up compared to before, where it was mostly just us and KCB, we were just chilling with them.
Many people wrote you off after a tough start. Now you’re 5–5, tied with teams like Fnatic and Team Heretics. Is the league level low, or is LR actually a top European team?
YamatoCannon: I think it’s the nature of Bo1s. We lost to KCB, but we beat G2 and KOI. We were slow starters, but I genuinely feel confident about our level now. We still need to fix a lot of early game things, because that can be punished, but we’re getting better. I also expect teams like G2 and MKOI to ramp up big-time.
They’re like sleeping dragons. They’ve had issues before and fixed them. Some teams have more liberty in how they approach the split because they almost assume they’ll make playoffs. The LEC level has been shaky in BO1s, but I think it’ll be much better, and I feel good about where we’re at.
1 day to go, 4 playoffs spots up for grabs…
The #LEC Versus standings after today’s games! pic.twitter.com/ZcqmnvceWX
— LEC (@LEC) February 7, 2026
What’s the day-to-day vibe like in Berlin with the team and staff?
YamatoCannon: Personally, I’m having a lot of fun, even with the issues we face. Every team has issues. It’s a high-pressure environment, with different ideas and directions. That can be stressful, but I’m a dinosaur. When I see these issues, I chuckle.
For me, it’s like moving a Rubik’s Cube around to make sure everyone’s on the same page. The vibe is good. Pro players are very focused on what they think is important, but as long as everyone is trying, I can work with any dynamic. And they try so hard. That makes the job easy and fun.
Rekkles recently said that Los Ratones might be the last thing he ever does in his professional career. I won’t ask what you’re doing next, but what could we wish for you next, Yamato?
YamatoCannon: Honestly, I think I’m done coaching. This Los Ratones project was perfect for me in every way, and I don’t see what could top it. I don’t want to join the LEC just to struggle. I’ve made my memories, I’ve made my peace. I don’t really see myself going back to coaching. Maybe I’d consider General Managing or managing teams on a bigger scale, setting up teams for success.
But coaching, outside of this project, doesn’t interest me much. That said, who knows what the future holds. Maybe someone comes knocking after we win First Stand with a crazy offer. But as you grow older, your responsibilities grow too. When I coach, I shut off everything else in life, and that comes at the cost of loved ones. I’m very selective now. I’ll never half-ass a coaching gig.