TI10 Top 6 team Virtus Pro tweet extremely bizarre message about the state of their Dota 2 roster

It is the season for roster changes and we've been following player movements closely through our Roster Reshuffle article. Earlier today on November 1st, Virtus Pro tweeted a "Dota 2 Roster Update" but definitely not the kind the community expects. The Virtus Pro Dota 2 squad might be about to undergo some changes.. or not

In the tweet, Virtus Pro said that following the end of the season a team meeting was held involving the players, coach and Sports Director. Each player was asked to say their piece on how they believe the team could improve next season.

"At this point we realize that our team has problems outside of the game as well as contradicting ideas of how we should play," said Virtus Pro in the announcement. "All of this stands in the way of achieving greater results."

Virtus Pro's performance at TI10 ended in top 6, an incredible result given the average age of the team just 19.6. The oldest player on the current roster is 21-year old Dmitry "DM" Dorokhin, with Nightfall, Save and Kingslayer all only 19.

The fact the team is so young is not a coincidence. This roster was VP's youth team (VP.Prodigy) before being picked up as the main roster in November 2020.

VP went on to say that given the situation they will be trying out some new players for position 1 and 4 before the start of the new DPC Season. The decision to look for a new position 4 is a curious one as Virtus Pro's current position 4 is also their captain Vitalie "Save-" Melnic.

However, they also said they might not change their roster.

"The final decision regarding the roster is yet to be made, and there is still a chance for us to start the season without any changes if the players will cooperate in the most crucial aspects," said Virtus Pro.

Virtus Pro's current Dota 2 roster:

There are currently no other details publicly available but there are a few options of what could be going down behind the scenes to warrant a social media post of this nature.

These theories are purely hypothetically and not based on any insider info.

Theory 1: The first theory is that contract negotiations might be underway. VP Prodigy became the main VP roster exactly a year ago, and this lack of "cooperation" mentioned in the tweet could be a subtle hint that they are hoping certain player(s) will accept what's on the table. This seems the most probable if Nightfall or Save are out of contract, the two positions Virtus Pro said they are looking to trial players for.

Save- and Nightfall have both competed for Virtus Pro for practically the entirety of their competitive careers after joining the org on trial back in September 2019. The 3 other players, Gpk, DM and Kingslayer have all competed for other orgs in the past.

A top 6 at The International could definitely justify some kind of an improvement if a new contract was being put before Save and/or Nightfall. Nightfall is also arguably Virtus Pro's best player.

Theory 2: The second theory is based around the mentions of "problems outside of the game". Typically when interpersonal issues arise between players, an org will favour the player or party they feel is the more valuable asset. Take for example Evil Geniuses in 2016 when they offered Peter "ppd" Dager a management position after he fell out with star player SumaiL.

The wording of Virtus Pro's statement gives the impression that some kind of ultimatum has been given to certain player(s), and they are awaiting to see what their reaction is. This could be anything from certain players having differing levels of motivation to straight up disagreement on playstyle. The latter seems more likely given VP said the roster had "contracting ideas on how we should play".

We will keep you updated on any news regarding the Virtus Pro Dota 2 roster. Until then be sure to keep an eye on our Roster Reshuffle article where we are tracking all the transfer news.