The 2022/2023 season transfer window in Southeast Asia is getting hotter. Amidst the hustle and bustle, several teams have secretly brought in big names from outside the Southeast Asian region. Just now, it seems that SMG have landed a deal with one of Europe’s most decorated players, Nikobaby.
The news about him was leaked earlier this morning via GoDz’s tweet which shows a list of SMG players that will participate in the Acer Predator League 2022 tournament in Tokyo, starting from November 11th. SMG later made it official on their recent announcement on Twitter.
The addition of Nicobaby to this team has undoubtedly sparked discussions on social media. Last month, during his livestream session on Twitch, he stated that Alliance would be his final professional team and emphasized that he is done with professional gaming.
At this time, it is unclear whether the Bulgarian will continue his career as a mainstay for the SMG team or only here for the Predator tournament. This event, nonetheless, should be enough to provide him with the challenge to see if he’s still got the passion to deal with big competition, once again.
Oli makes his return to SEA
Nicobaby isn’t the only major surprise in the SEA transfer window of the week. Chan “Oli” Chon Kien has surprised fans as well, when he was announced as a new player for the Philippines-based team, Talon Esports on November 7th.
Dota fans have long recognized him as one of the best supports in Asia who played for Invictus Gaming. Over three years, he has competed in the Chinese and international competitive scene. And now he’s returning to the region where he kick started his professional career.
Along with Jabz, who was just acquired from the Fnatic squad, their expertise as international players will undoubtedly be a tremendous asset for Talon when they begin their campaign for 2022/2023 competitive season.
These surprise transfer news certainly proves that SEA still has a lot to offer in terms of competitiveness. We’ve seen that SEA teams are not afraid to gamble on the big transfer. The best example was months ago when T1 announced the addition of ana and Topson as their headliners. Expect to hear more of these any time soon!
