The rivalry between Fnatic and G2 has been one of the most fun elements of the LEC over recent years.
With the start of the 2021 LEC Spring Season right around the corner, kickoff is on Friday Jan. 22. It’s a good time to have a look at the two teams’ offseason moves and how their rivalry might shape up in the new season.
[Related: LEC 2021 Preseason Power Rankings]
Fnatic: Against All Odds
Being on the losing end of the rivalry for the past two seasons, Fnatic wasn’t allowed to catch a break from G2 in the free agency period either. Following in the footsteps of his former teammate Rasmus “Caps” Winther, Fnatic’s most experienced player and leader, Martin “Rekkles” Larsson, left the team to join G2.
However, it hasn’t been all bad for Fnatic as they managed to fill up Rekkles’ spot with Elias “Upset” Lipp who has been looking for an opportunity to prove himself as the top ADC of the region. It will be interesting to see if Upset can deliver and become a dominating force in the Bot Lane, helping Fnatic gain at least a lane advantage against G2 in the new season.
On the Mid Lane Fnatic parted ways with Tim “Nemesis” Lipovšek, bringing in Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer from NA’s Cloud9 who needed a new team after getting replaced by Luka “Perkz” Perković. It is debatable whether Nisqy is a significant enough upgrade to help Fnatic contend against G2, however. He is another player who will look to prove himself as a top tier, Mid Laner, come the 2021 season.
Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau, Oskar “Selfmade” Boderek and Iliev “Hylissang” Galabov are the three remaining players from Fnatic’s 2020 roster. They will try to contend for a top position despite going up against perhaps the strongest roster EU region has ever seen.
The coach of this new iteration of Fnatic will be Jakob “YamatoCannon” Mebdi. Returning to his home region after becoming the first Westerner to coach a Korean team, YamatoCannon will likely bring in a lot of new ideas and experience to try and build a new Fnatic dynasty.
G2: The Reigning Kings
The reigning kings of EU for two years in the running, G2 has somehow sold possibly the greatest winner the West has ever seen and still came out of it as winners. The fact that they managed to do this at the expense of their biggest regional rival, Fnatic, makes it all the more impressive.
It is hard to make any claims against G2 in the rivalry between them and Fnatic in the current landscape. Even Fnatic’s biggest star players seem to believe in G2 as a better team to play for as they keep leaving to join G2 when they get the call.
G2’s main disadvantage against Fnatic in the upcoming season, if you can call it that, will be the fact that anything but first place is a disappointment for the team that they have. Fnatic might be content with themselves if they can once again manage to put up a good fight against all odds, however the reigning kings of Europe don’t have the same luxury. Their true challenge has to be not getting the best of Fnatic but winning the World Championship. They can’t afford to lose against their regional rivals.
Featured Image Courtesy of LoL Esports Flickr
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