Misfits vs MAD Lions
Friday, February 21 – 18:00 CET
Misfits are one of the biggest surprises of the season, having won six of their opening eight games, which sits them tied-first alongside G2 and Origen. Last week they bested G2 Esports and Vitality which suggests Mistifs are easily one of the best teams in the league, yet that’s not the case. Instead, they are very overrated and last week was a complete fluke. They might make it to the playoffs, but even that is not guaranteed, as they will get exposed sooner or later. MAD Lions seem like a perfect team to do so. Although MAD Lions are also slightly overhyped, they’re more than capable of pushing Misfits to their limits, solely because MAD Lions play very organized and know what they’re supposed to do. Expect a close bout with plenty of kills on the board.
Prediction: Over 22.5 kills – 1.97 Pinnacle
Vitality vs Schalke 04
Friday, February 21 – 19:00 CET
After their win over G2 Esports, Schalke suddenly caught the attention of everyone, but in all fairness, it was a fluke win and not a true representation of Schalke’s strength. The team is very overhyped because they finally won the game and many people point fingers towards FORG1VEN as Schalke’s main problem and now that he’s gone Schalke should improve right? Not necessarily. FORG1VEN did not have the best start of the season, however, he had by far the closest enemy jungle proximity in the league, so it’s easy to point fingers at him and claim he is a bad player due to his low KDA. In reality, however, Schalke lost a lot more than they gained by swapping out their ADCs.
Schalke will enter this game with their heads in the clouds and inflated egos, which won’t help their cause. Vitality are 0-8, but they won’t stay without a win for long. This match should be much closer than expected and although Vitality are still without “Milica”, they play well enough to give Schalke a run for their money.
Prediction: Over 22.5 kills – 1.97 Pinnacle
Excel Esports v G2 Esports
Friday, February 21 – 20:00 CET
Despite their losses in Week 4, G2 Esports are still the best team in Europe, who can have their bad days, or weeks. Their 0-2 last week was not so much the result of their bad performance, but rather them being out drafted. Now, with two losses to their name, the race to the top of the league standings became much more heated, as three teams share the same 6-2 record, meaning G2 Esports can’t afford to drop more games, especially against Excel Esports. While Excel are a well-coached team, they lack the individual quality to compete with G2. In this prediction, I am really counting on G2 Esports to have a good draft and bounce back and if they can get their hands on the right team composition, the reigning World Championship runners-up should have smooth sailing to the win.
Prediction: G2 Esports -9.5 kills – 1.89 Pinnacle
Origen vs SK Gaming
Friday, February 21 – 21:00 CET
This will be a complete mismatch, featuring one of the hottest LEC teams taking on SK Gaming, who are sitting at the eighth place in the league with 2-6 record. The way SK have been playing makes it seem like they won their only two games by accident. There is nothing positive about this team and no reason to believe SK are even remotely capable of finishing in the playoffs. Origen on the other side are piping hot, having won six out of their opening eight fixtures which sits them at the top of the league. Winning games like this should be a cakewalk for Origen, who have not failed to impress with their consistency so far this season.
Prediction: Origen -9.5 kills – 1.93 Pinnacle
Rogue vs Fnatic
Friday, February 21 – 22:00 CET
Both Rogue and Fnatic have a lot to prove, as they meet on the Summoner’s Rift for the first time this season. Having won five of their opening eight fixtures, both sit at the fourth place in the league standings, one win short of catching up to the league leaders.
Last week, Fnatic took their frustrations after losing to G2 out on Vitality to win the first game of Week 4, but fell flat against MAD Lions, who might have taught them a thing or two with their complete dominance of the map. The match was one-sided, to say the least, and it does raise a question of when will Fnatic find their stride. Their next match will be played against Rogue, who have had a fairly easy time against some weaker teams, but failed to deliver against Origen, G2 and the young and talented MAD Lions back in Week 3.
This will be the first meeting between these two sides and based on their recent performances and the individual quality they bring, it’s hard to say exactly which team has an advantage heading into the Rift. Pinnacle has Rogue priced as a massive underdog with 2.93 compared to Fnatic who are billed as the undisputed favorites at 1.36, which severely underestimates the strength of Rogue. Although Emil “Larssen” Larsson and the company failed to show enough to solidify themselves as the playoffs contenders, they don’t have any notable weakness in their playstyle.
Their ADC Steven “Hans Sama” Liv still has a lot to prove and needs to be a bit to passive, which is expected, since he just recently joined the team, but overall Rogue are slowly improving. Fnatic, on the other side, can hardly be described as a team on the rise, and are instead becoming worse. While this will be a crucial match for them to win, it’s clear that they have some communication issues and tend to have games where they are way too passive, with no real idea as of how to approach their fixtures and win. That is mostly due to the fact neither of their carries (Martin “Rekkles” Larsson and Tim “Nemesis” Lipovšek) managed to find their rhythm and until they do so and step up to their team, Fnatic are not a serious threat to any team.
At 2.93 (Pinnacle), Rogue are a very solid pick for an upset win, however, with the relatively high kills line (6.5), backing them to keep this match close provides an excellent opportunity for a bet.
Prediction: Rogue +6.5 kills – 1.88 Pinnacle
Best Bet: MAD Lions v Misfits, Over 22.5 kills – 1.97 Pinnacle
