We’re fast approaching the second week of the EU LCS and after a hot start to the split I’m excited for more of what could be the most tightly contested split yet.
Fnatic and Fna…I mean Origen sit cleanly atop the league at 2-0 and looking at their coming week that isn’t likely to change. On the opposite side of the table, Gambits woes may continue with a heavy week against H2k and Fnatic, while SK has a chance to climb themselves out of the bottom with one against Giants.
Games to watch:
Day 1- H2k-Gaming (1-1) vs Gambit Gaming (0-2)
On paper, the addition of Forgiven makes Gambit a very scary squad. However we are yet to see the impact it was supposed to have. Blame for Gambit’s abysmal week one has been placed on an inability to practice and generally poor management with the team, hopefully as weeks go on we should start to see the true potential of the team. If all is well within the Gambit camp, this is one of the games for them to show it. All lanes aside from mid have the potential to swing in Gambit’s favour if the right things fall into place. H2k on the other hand will more than likely be looking to tuck away any doubt in their top tier ability after falling flat against Origen.
A one sided steamroll or an exciting match, it’s mostly down to how Gambit turn up to this game.
Day 1- Unicorns of Love (1-1) vs Copenhagen Wolves (1-1)
Both of these squads suffer the same flaw in generally erratic consistency issues. On their best days they can be some of the best EU has to offer, on others they look lost, ill prepared and generally out of their depth. In these two teams more than others, it’s easy to see when they haven’t given enough thought and preparation to their opponents beforehand.
Regardless, this should prove to be a bloodbath with the potential for many scraps across the map. The bottom lane swings heavily in favour of the Wolves while the middle sits in UOL’s court so the real game changer for me is how both teams deal with the top lane and jungle pressure. Special attention should also be paid to UOL’s pick habits as the trio of Maokai, Kog’Maw and Annie were picked in both of their week one games to varying effect.
Day 2- H2k-Gaming (1-1) vs Elements (1-1)
I’m picking another H2k game but it’s because I seriously believe they have the potential to be the best ones to watch this week.
This game is a chance for the new Elements squad to properly demonstrate whether or not they’re a squad worth keeping an eye on. I frequently refer to H2k as the benchmark and the gatekeepers of the top spots because post-KaSing they were the most consistent and effective team in EU. Team play, lane strength, objective control, if you can beat H2k you’re a team worth challenging for the top spots. Origen proved that they’re worthy last week, in such a convincing fashion that H2k looked worse than I’d seen them in a while. It’s not too late for Froggen’s squad to make it to worlds, but it will be if they can’t make an immediate impact against their competitors.
Can promisQ and Tabzz hold their own against Hjarnan and KaSing? Is Dexter able to make more of an impact that Loulex? Any of the lanes in this matchup could go either way and it will be interesting to see how it turns out.
Week Predications:
Day 1- EL, FNC, H2K, OG, UOL
Day 2- FNC, SK, UOL, H2K, OG
Special upset mention: Day 2- Giants Gaming vs SK Gaming
SK still look like they’re finding their feet with the return of Candy Panda, Fredy has been off form as of recent and generally Fox is the only one who still feels like they’re playing to win. Giants on the other hand have been showing improvement in areas but still have the tendencies of a bottom-of-the-league team. I doubt they’ll get a win so easily gifted as the CW one was again, but they do have the right tools for an upset if they’ve been working on their flaws and reviewing their games.
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