FaZe Clan’s magical run at IEM Cologne continues as their CS:GO roster has stunned Gambit, the best team in the world, in the quarterfinals.
On Ancient, Gambit narrowly took pistol via a Hobbit 3K, surviving with 2HP, then punished a FaZe second round force buy rush. Gambit’s defense was solid, jumping to a 5-0 lead and forcing a FaZe tactical timeout. Hobbit had a tremendous first half, punishing FaZe and pushing Gambit to an 11-4 lead. But FaZe showed why they picked Ancient with an equally impressive CT side on the shoulders of thunderous production from HÃ¥vard “rain” Nygaard. The rest of FaZe played their parts, coming back from the edge of defeat, 16-13.
Overpass was another back-and-forth affair, with both sides trading streaks of rounds throughout both halves. For the second straight map, FaZe amounted a massive comeback, forcing overtime after trailing 15-10. Despite the impressive resolve shown by FaZe, they eventually fell in the final round of second overtime, losing Overpass 22-20.
Fittingly, the series turned the ultimate third map setting, Inferno. Yet again, FaZe showed impressive resilience, winning nine of the last 11 rounds heading into the half. Then they got to a blistering start on defense, boosting their lead to 15-7. Gambit strung together a few rounds in an attempt towards their own comeback, but FaZe shut the door and took Inferno 16-9, completing the 2-1 upset.
After a tumultuous start to the Twistzz-karrigan era of FaZe Clan, their IEM Cologne run has been a welcome reprieve to the players. FaZe are the only team to qualify for the playoffs after playing through the Play-In stage, and booked their quarterfinals spot at the end of an impressive lower bracket run during the group stage. They move on to play Na’Vi in the semifinals.
