LEC: G2 Esports and Excel advance. Trouble for Fnatic and MAD Lions

The group stage of the LEC, where eight teams are fighting for the playoffs, has reached its first half. There were several surprises.

The LEC has begun the next chapter of the summer split, and there’s a lot at stake. Eventual success and a playoff berth could at least guarantee the teams that didn’t win the split a spot in the Season Finals and a shot at Worlds.

Season Finals is open to the split winners and at least three other teams (if the split is won by someone other than G2/MAD Lions), based on performance that year. After the first week, SK Gaming, BDS and, ironically, Excel are very close to securing participation. Fnatic, on the other hand, still have to fight for their hopes.

Excel have caught their stride and after two tragic splits will finish a worst fourth

The biggest surprises are attributed to the Excel players. They managed to find a way out of the abyss after a turbulent year, when the team was squatting at the bottom of the league table. The team has been very coordinated so far and the current record is very good for them.

A big part of this is due to the team’s drivers who managed to shake off a long period of setbacks. Excel have shown considerable strength in their debut at this stage of the competition (thanks to the change in league format).

The team, which finished last twice in a row and now jumped into the Elite Four, paved the way with wins over certain Season Finals participants MAD Lions (2-0) and SK Gaming (2-1). This success does not give the team 100% certainty of participation. However, no one can take away their 90 points in the rankings.

They need to have more (100) than the sixth-placed Vitality (137 points) to succeed. Due to their embarrassing fall in the regular season, they will not add any extra points and must rely on the failure of their competitors.

Excel, however, must reach the finals to be sure of participation. Only then will they be assured of at least one last berth in the Season Finals.

G2 have confirmed their role as the most stable team in the league

On the other hand, what probably didn’t surprise anyone too much is G2’s advancement to the playoffs. The team has shown that its form is the best in the league. Neither KOI nor Team Heretics were able to deal the necessary blow to the big favourite or to dramatize their series.

So for a team that is assured of making the Season Finals, a few extra games to fine-tune their form will come in handy. Whether anyone will realistically threaten G2 is now unanimously in the realm of theory. But you never know, anything is possible in League of Legends.

After a great opening, the first complication for Fnatic

Fnatic’s performance was definitely one of the highlights of the summer split. The team underwent something of a performance renaissance and positioned itself as a hot contender for the title. After two failed splits, definitely a big refresh.

But what you can do in the regular season has to be confirmed in the later stages. Enthusiastic fans were looking forward to the series against SK Gaming, which was the most pivotal from the position of fighting for Worlds qualification.

However, Fnatic didn’t make it through the important series and after the 0-2 result, a hard sobering came. So the team has to go into a corrective series, which from the Czech fan’s point of view will be more than attractive. Humanoid versus Carzzy will offer a delicate battle for Fnatic’s hopes. Carzzy’s MAD Lions are sure to participate in the qualifiers.

The MAD Lions are still searching and not playing optimally. The team needs to find out very quickly the cause of the lacklustre performance. Europe will need stable playing teams in the context of competitors from China and Korea at the upcoming Worlds.

Should Fnatic succeed, they will face a rematch with SK Gaming, who failed to make it through the series with Excel and delayed the certainty of participation in the Season Finals. This series will literally be an all-out battle for Fnatic. In the context of the team’s results so far, there is nothing else left to do after Excel’s promotion to the elite four.

Source: LEC, Leaguepedia, Kaza LoL