G2 Esports easily dealt with Misfits Gaming and Rogue, while Fnatic has been making yet another impressive lower bracket through the LEC playoffs. This weekend,we expect Fnatic to make it to the finals - but not to the title.
It has been a long time coming, but the finals weekend of the LEC Summer Split is upon us. After eight weeks of play, several tiebreaker and two weeks of Bo5 series, the three best teams of the LEC come to blows once more in the upcoming two days. For G2 Esports, it is a chance to solidify their place at the top after the big roster changes last winger. For Fnatic, an opportunity to salvage what looked like a disappointing year after making some of the - on paper - most impressive signings in recent year. For Rogue, a way to finally take what has eluded them for years - the title and more importantly, a way to prove to everyone that when the chips are down, they step up. Whose star will shine the brightest this Sunday?
Match 1: Rogue 2-3 Fnatic
After going through the lower bracket and defeating Excel Esports, Misfits Gaming and MAD Lions, Fnatic earned a spot in the losers’ semifinal against Rogue, who started strong against the Lions but stumbled with a 3-0 against G2 Esports. On Saturday, they will be facing off against each other in the lower bracket final for a chance to take on G2 again and for a guaranteed Worlds Groups spot.
Despite barely making the playoffs and then almost being eliminated in the first round by Excel, Fnatic have looked a lot better last week with a 3-0 against Misfits Gaming and a 3-1 against MAD Lions. While their drafting was occasionally suspect, last week Fnatic showed some improvements we had waiting a long time to see, such as good play in the mid lane and jungle - in fact, newcomer Iván "Razork" Martín Díaz was the MVP of Fnatic in both of their last series. Granted, against Rogue they will be playing against a team with somewhat better baseline players compared to Fnatic's earlier opponents and we have praised their performance in the first round. Still, unless there is a significant change from the Rogue that was swept by G2, I think Fnatic’s favored to win this match. I expect we will see a more contested series, however, which once more goes to a game 5.
Match 2: G2 Esports 3-1 ???
Ever since they shook off their mid-season slump, G2 Esports have been on a tear through the LEC. We saw occasional stumbles against Misfits, but the team looked quite impressive against Rogue, playing well when they were occasionally from behind and being very decisive when ahead.
It is risky to predict how G2 will fare against their next opponent when we don’t know who that opponent will be, never mind what they will show in the semifinal. Still, the spring champions’ play in the last month or so has been very impressive and I would give them the edge against both Fnatic or Rogue. G2’s mid and jungle are probably the best in Europe both in class and in synergy, their top laner seems to be back in form and the bot lane is occasionally explosive. I do think they might stumble in one of the games, but I expect that in the end, G2 is likely to defend their title, probably with a 3-1.
Read More:
- LoL Worlds 2022: Group Draw Dates Announced
- LEC Playoffs Round 2 Recap
- LEC Playoffs Round 1 MVP: ROG Comp
The LEC continues with a game between Fnatic and Rogue starting at 5 PM CEST on Saturday, September 10th. Don’t miss it!