When is Faker coming back to the T1 starting lineup?

It’s been a tumultuous week for T1’s League of Legends division. After news broke that the team would be without its star mid laner Faker for the foreseeable future due to an arm injury, the squad saw its head coach and former franchise jungler Bengi resign just hours before a July 8 match. 

For 11 years, Faker has been the cornerstone of the T1 franchise, and only rarely has he been subbed out of the lineup. Each time that he has been placed on the bench, it’s been for strategic reasons and not health-related ones. Now, though, with Faker on the sidelines for at least two weeks, the team needs to figure out how to weather the storm without their All-Star caliber player. 

Here’s when Faker is expected to return, as well as how T1 can keep their playoff chances alive without him in the picture. 

When is Faker making his return to professional LoL?

It was officially announced on July 5 that Faker would be out with an arm injury that had been affecting his performance for several weeks. The following day after Faker was unexpectedly sent to the bench for his injury, then-head coach Bengi confirmed that a timetable of at least two weeks was in place for Faker’s recovery. This means that Faker will miss at least four matches on T1’s schedule. He will likely return in time for T1’s July 21 match against Hanwha Life Esports. 

Related: Bengi resigns as T1 head coach following slow LCK start, Faker injury

So far, Faker is halfway through that two-week timeframe, and T1 has lost both of their matches that they’ve been forced to play without him. On July 5, the team lost to DRX by way of a 2-0 sweep, and on July 8, they were smoked by Gen.G in a match that would have otherwise been a marquee matchup had Faker been in the lineup. 

The team had a record of 6-2 when Faker went down with his arm injury and could fall to 6-6 should they lose all four of their games by the time he’s scheduled to come back. Of course, Faker could miss even more time depending on the status of his health.

Who is subbing for Faker while he’s out?

Taking the mid lane reins for Faker while he nurses his arm injury is Poby, T1’s Challenger-level mid laner. Poby is a 17-year-old rookie with little experience on the professional stage, and he had never played at the highest level of professional LoL prior to his trial-by-fire debut last week. For the time being, though, he’s T1’s best option at the mid lane position. 

Poby will play at least two more matches for T1 before Faker’s estimated time of return on July 21—one against Nongshim RedForce and another against Dplus KIA.