Uphill Battle: Ch4knu returns to fuel Omega’s tough playoffs push

JOSHUA “CH4KNU” MANGILOG returned to the action in the matchup of Smart Omega against TNC Pro Team in Week 6 of the MPL Philippines Season 15, but their losing streak persisted despite the return of the veteran roamer.

What was the reasoning behind Smart Omega’s decision to substitute Czedrick “Super Yoshi” Romero?

“Tina-try namin yung mga possibilities na pwedeng mangyari. Kung hindi gumana yung isa, try naman natin yung isa,” coach Lemuel “Lembot” Lucban explained, attempting to make things work with minor tweaks in the main lineup.

Super Yoshi was supposed to play for Smart Omega today—at least that’s what TNC Pro Team thought until things took an unexpected turn.

“Nagulat na lang din kami nung binigay na yung roster kanina. Di namin in-expect. Akala namin si Yoshi,” coach Douglas “ImbaDeejay” Astibe said.

“Akala ko si Yoshi po talaga, sayang nga po. Nakakatuwa pa rin po kasi si Ch4knu yung naglaro,” Tristan “Yawi” Cabrera added.

Smart Omega might have had a trick up their sleeve, but TNC Pro Team did not go easy on Ch4knu upon his return.

PHOTO: MPL Philippines, MOONTON Games

Time to push the panic button?

Things might not be looking great for Smart Omega, but they chose not to push the panic button just yet.

“Para sa akin, hindi pa time para mag-panic kasi tatlo kaming nasa baba. May laban pa rin talaga kami. Same boat kami pare-parehas. Kalmado lang siguro. Di kami nagpa-panic. Once nag-panic kami, lalo kami mag-ka-crumble eh,” coach Lembot said.

“Kailangan na namin ibigay talaga yung best namin kasi patapos na yung regular season. Kailangan na namin ipakita yung talent na binigay sa amin,” Jomari “Jowm” Pingol expressed, determined to give his all as the end of the regular season approaches.

The MPL Philippines is taking a two-week hiatus for Holy Week and the Snapdragon Pro Series Mobile Masters 2025, but Smart Omega is staying in grind mode to keep their playoff hopes alive.

“Syempre! Mag ga-grind talaga kami, yun yung kailangan eh. Ever since naman, since week one, nag ga-grind pa rin talaga kami. Same energy pa rin yun yun simula week one hanggang inter season, grind lang,” Coach Lembot expressed.

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