After a two-season hiatus, Filipino coach Karl “Giee” Barrientos is back on the sidelines, aiming to help Bleed Esports improve upon their 5th-6th place finish in the MPL Singapore last season.
In an exclusive interview with Tiebreaker Times, Giee shared how his family became instrumental in his decision to return to coaching and explore opportunities abroad.
“Yung family ko naging motivation ko kaya bumalik ulit ako sa pro scene. Tsaka andun parin talaga yung passion ko sa esports. Babalik-balikan ko talaga yung pagco-coach kasi nasa dugo ko na ata yun,” he said.
“Happy sila for me nung nalaman nila na madaming offers sa’kin. Sabi lang nila is pag-isipan maigi kung saan okay, go lang. Andyan lang daw sila palagi to support me.”
Before deciding to join Bleed Esports, Giee disclosed that he received numerous offers from various MPL regions.
“Madami nagreach out mula iba’t ibang region like sa ‘tin, Singapore, Indonesia at Malaysia. Mga last year, bago magsimula yung M5 World Championship, meron na talaga nag-ooffer pero meron pa akong contract sa RSG that time,” he said.
Filipino import Jeff “S4gitnu” Subang played a pivotal role in helping Giee find the best fit for his coaching style in his first venture overseas.
“Unang nag reach out talaga sakin yung team manager nila si Sir Andrew tapos si S4gitnu kinausap din ako through messenger. Nag-ask ako saknya ano backround ng Bleed, paano palakad ng team saka kung kamusta sa SG. Kung paano makisama mga backend kasi nagbebase din talaga ako sa mga makakatrabaho,” Giee shared.
“So ayun sabi ni S4gitnu ok naman lahat at maayos. Magaling sila makisama at mababait. Kaya nagset sila ng meeting para makausap ko sila Sir Sean, head of operations ng Bleed and si Sir Andrew. Nag-offer sila pero di ko agad tinanggap kasi meron din ibang team na nag-offer ng mga oppurtunity. Pinagisipan ko nang maigi syempre nagpaalam din ako sa family ko. After makapagbackground check and all, nakapagdecide ako na tanggapin yung offer ng Bleed.”
Giee played a crucial role in RSG Philippines’ championship runs, including the MSC 2022 title where he took charge of the team in Malaysia after head coach Brian “Panda” Lim couldn’t travel with them.
However, he wants to temper expectations with his new team, understanding that it takes time to develop a championship-caliber team.
“Ang goal ko lang namin sa Bleed this season is mapatibay yung samahan namin sa team kasi mostly bagong players so maraming adjustment ang need gawin. Di man namin ma reach yung championship this season maybe sa susunod na season pero malakas pa rin tiwala ko sa mga players and assistant coach na kasama ko,” explained Giee.
“Tingin ko kaya namin magdominate this season pero sabi ko nga di yun yung pinaka goal namin. Lahat naman gusto makaapak sa MSC kaya I will try my best para sa team ko ngayon.”
