We have passed the midpoint of EMEA Stage 2 Challengers with Fnatic and Guild leading their respective groups. Without many surprises, favourites of each group have shown strong performances to make it to Masters Copenhagen, excluding G2 Esports, who have been a total disappointment.
Fnatic is very close to securing a playoffs ticket, just like Guild Esports, leading their group with 3-0 scores. The race to follow them seems more interesting as Fnatic and Guild look unstoppable. Acend and FunPlus Phoenix have advantage over G2 and OG LDN UTD in Group A, while M3 Champions and Team Liquid are in a similar position over NAVI and BBL.
VCT EMEA Week 3 recap
The week kicked off with yet another Team Liquid game. Both TL and Guild had 2-0 records until this game, and they were looking to get in a good position for the playoffs. Guild Esports started by crushing TL 13-3 on Split, but a fast answer was due on Icebox with 13-6. While we were expecting a good fight for the victory, Guild Esports dominated Fracture following a 18-9 Raze from trexx, taking the win 13-4.
OG LDN UTD played G2 Esports in the second game of the day. It was a chance for G2 to get back in the playoffs race as they lost a game against FPX last week. However, OGLU started really well on Ascent and even found the win, following a strong Cypher performance from hype. OGLU managed to play well on Breeze as well, but G2 secured the win 13-10, taking it to Fracture. There, OG LDN UTD managed to find the deserved victory, coming back from 7-5 to end it 13-11.
The next day’s start was Natus Vincere vs BIG. Both these teams had a poor start, losing both their games. BIG started with a strong win on Bind, even though NAVI looked like they could turn it around during the second half. NAVI found a very similar win on Ascent to tie the series. BIG didn’t show up on Haven though as NAVI’s Cloud and zeddy helped the Ukrainians secure an easy 13-7 victory.
Next up was a great series: Acend vs Fnatic, our expectations were high from this one. However, the battle of Turkish carries was much more one-sided than we expected. After taking four rounds in a row at the start of Ascent, Acend lost 13 in a row to lose the first map to Fnatic, thanks to a Derke Chamber show. On Icebox, cNed got lost while Alfajer & Boaster were on the job to defeat Acend 13-8.
BBL Esports played M3 Champions on the last day, and the former fought back honorably, but it just wasn’t enough to take down the M3C roster. nAts put on a show and brought the win to his team’s side. FunPlus Phoenix had a weak opponent in FOKUS, after a very close 13-11 win on Breeze, they went 13-1 to win Fracture and close out the series.
VCT EMEA Week 4
Check out the schedule for the fourth week below:
June 3, Friday
Acend (1.85) vs G2 Esports (1.85) - 16:00 CEST
Natus Vincere (2.90) vs Team Liquid (1.35) - 19:00 CEST
June 4, Saturday
BIG (4.80) vs M3 Champions (1.15) - 16:00 CEST
OG LDN UTD (3.20) vs FunPlus Phoenix (1.30) - 19:00 CEST
June 5, Sunday
BBL Esports (5.30) vs Guild Esports (1.12) - 16:00 CEST
FOKUS (6.00) vs Fnatic (1.10) - 19:00 CEST
This is the week where the fates of many teams will be decided, such as FOKUS. Fnatic will want to defeat them and secure first place, while FOKUS gets eliminated. The same goes for OG LDN UTD and G2 Esports, it’s a do or die for both of them against FPX and Acend. Guild also faces a BBL that’s been unlucky rather than weak, but they should take the victory to secure first place. It might be a chaotic one, especially after OGLU’s victory against G2 Esports, so make sure to tune in.
If you are interested, check out Luckbox to watch the games and if you want, claim your 100% bonus before placing your bets on your favourite VALORANT teams.
