With a Lower Bracket final between Fnatic and Rogue on Saturday to get us ready for the Sunday Grand Final, this last weekend on the LEC has an odd feel to it. With Europe final, three sides already locked in a spot at Worlds. The LEC, however, won’t be sending G2 Esports to Worlds for the first time since the organization first appeared in Europe’s top league. With their dramatic 3-2 loss to Fnatic meaning they’ll spend 2021 trophyless.
Fnatic v Rogue
After a massive 3-2 victory against G2 Esports, and denying them a spot at Worlds in the process. It certainly wasn’t the result many expected, with Fnatics less experienced roster showing up when it mattered. Now, attention will turn to Rogue and whether Fnatic can overcome one more hurdle on their way to the Grand Final with MAD Lions.
For Rogue, they crashed out against MAD Lions yet again in the playoffs, which could set them up for a difficult weekend if they manage to beat Fnatic. Rogue has shown in the regular season that they can beat anyone on their day, however, Rogue is staring down the prospect of having back-to-back Splits where they fail to claim a title, despite G2 Esports not being present.
Now, who’s going to come out on top. With Fnatic having come through the Lower Bracket, they’d be considered the underdog, however, with their form having won every game in that bracket they’ll be the form side. That, and Rogue having lost 3-0 to MAD Lions for us, puts Fnatic as favourites. It’s also worth noting that Fnatic has taken all three of their playoff games to five games, so that trend may well continue. You can pick up Fnatic at 10/11 to win the series, alongside match odds.
100 Thieves v Cloud9
100 Thieves will feel like they’ve missed an opportunity at a Grand Final shot, after dropping a 2-1 lead against Team Liquid. Whilst they only had Evil Geniuses to beat to get to the Upper Bracket Final, 100 Thieves folded against Team Liquid and now find themselves in a tough Lower Bracket Final against an inform Cloud9.
Cloud9 also came back to win their match against TSM, knocking them out of Worlds contention in the process. Cloud9 will feel they go into the series as strong favourites, and with the prospect of a rematch against Team Liquid on the cards, they’ll be confident. That said, 100 Thieves pushed Team Liquid to the very last, and had two chances to beat them before they collapsed in the 4th and 5th games.
For us, this has Cloud9 victory written all over it, however, if 100 Thieves can refocus and bring their performances from their wins against Team Liquid, they’ve got a chance. For us, this is a Cloud9 victory, though we suspect 100 Thieves are capable of picking up at least one match.
