The newest additions to the FaZe Clan CS:GO roster made their presence felt as they comfortably swept their opposition to begin play at the ELEAGUE Premier yesterday.
FaZe Clan defeated Natus Vincere and Renegades in consecutive games to finish atop Group A—the first of four groups to be played at the premier event in Atlanta, Georgia. FaZe saw contributions from a mix of their star players over the two victories, setting the stage for what could be a dominant season for the team.
FaZe’s victory over Natus Vincere was particularly impressive. While the first half ended with a relatively close 9-6 score in favor of FaZe, the second half was a far simpler affair. FaZe rattled off seven consecutive rounds to sweep the half and take home a dominating 16-6 victory over one of the world’s most talented teams.
Håvard “rain” Nygaard played well for FaZe, as his game-leading 24 frags included a frighteningly efficient USP ace in the opening pistol round.
The victory was especially sweet for Ladislav “Guardian” Kovács, who finished with 21 frags and got his licks in against his former teammates on Na`Vi.
FaZe’s earlier win over Renegades was a bit closer, but they were never in any serious trouble as captain Finn “karrigan” Andersen kept the ship steady and Nikola “Niko” Kovač delivered 25 frags, just ahead of new teammate Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer’s 22.
The day was far more inauspicious for G2 Esports. The French side were coming off of an impressive tournament victory at DreamHack Masters Malmö, but couldn’t summon much of the stellar form that powered them to success there. After taking a narrow first half lead against Na`Vi, G2 fell apart in the second half, losing 10 of 12 rounds to drop their opening game of the tournament.
G2 will look to get back on track against Australia’s Renegades in a best-of-three elimination series when play resumes Saturday (Sept. 9). The winning team will go on to face Natus Vincere in the group’s decider match to see who will join FaZe Clan in the playoffs.
