Week 5 and the halfway point to the entire split is just around the bend. LNG and EDG continue their rampage, sitting at a 100% series win rate. EDG have an even more impressive record of only dropping one game, in their series against BLG. However, on the opposite side of the spectrum, Victory Five are the last team to remain winless. Game-wise they aren’t doing much better, with only one game win in their 2:1 loss to JD Gaming.
Week 4: Day 5
Match 1: OMG vs Team World Elite
Being as week 4 only has six days of action, OMG and WE will start off the week’s fifth day on Saturday. Team World Elite did manage to bounce back from their 0:2 week with a win over BLG, but it wasn’t a convincing win. With Shanks returning to the roster and having two stellar performances, he is the expected starter to face Creme, who is the newest hyped rookie in the LPL.
After tripping over BLG, OMG bounced back and took down ThunderTalk Gaming in a clean 2:0 series. Creme continues to be one of the most impressive rookies, picking up the rookie of week 3. With the oscillation in the WE mid lane, it could be Creme’s series to win.
Prediction: Team World Elite
Match 2: Rare Atom vs LNG
In what could be the match of the week, LNG will take on RA. LNG will look to continue with their 100% win rate, and after their shaky series against TT, they had a very convincing win over IG. With Tarzan returning to be the star jungler he was on Griffin, LNG look nigh unstoppable. However, Icon is also having his best performance since 2017. Leading the MVP count, Icon is proving that he can still compete with the best.
On the other side of the rift, Rare Atom have been on a bit a tear themselves. Much like in spring, their series tend to go the distance, but Rare Atom takes it in the end with a 2:1 victory. Unlike spring, Rare Atom is no longer the Fofo show. Leyan is tied with Fofo in the MVP standings, with both Cube and iBoy claiming 2 each. Rare Atom should put up a fight against LNG, and this series should be a good one.
Prediction: LNG
Match 3: FunPlus Phoenix vs Invictus Gaming
Invictus Gaming are currently on a bit of a downward swing. After getting absolutely run over by LNG, they lost to LGD two days later. The hardest part for IG fans is that they often have leads and advantages, but never seem to close games out. Hopefully, coach NoFe will help solve this issue, but by the time he is cleared from post-travelling quarantine, it might be too late for Invictus Gaming.
Meanwhile, FPX are going in the opposite direction. After losing to LNG, FPX have been on a rampage, taking down TT, RNG and WE. DoinB in the mid-lane has been an absolute menace, winning MVP of week 3. With the two teams going in such opposite directions, there is little reason to belive that this match won’t be one sidded.
Prediction: FunPlus Phoenix
Week 4: Day 6
Match 1: Victory Five vs Bilibili Gaming
Victory Five are currently in dead last in the LPL, sitting at zero wins and six losses. The young squad continues to struggle to find an identity, and have now promoted Aliez, who was previously their top laner in 2019-20. With another veteran player, it is possible that Victory Five now are able to find an avenue to victory. However, against BLG, it will be a tall order.
Bilibili are turning out to be the true gatekeepers of the LPL. If a team loses to BLG, they probably won’t make playoffs. But beating them means that you probably make it. While it yet to be decided if BLG themselves will make playoffs, this match shouldn’t be much of a challenge.
Prediction: BLG
Match 2: Top vs EDG
The second match of the day should be a good one. EDG has been in excellent form, and have been playing some of their best League of Legends. Considered by many to be the best team in the world right now, EDG are getting close to confirming their playoff spot. A win here would put them at 8:0, tieing with LNG’s spring result of 8 wins.
On the other side of summoner’s rift, Top Esports has had a bumpy season so far. They suffered losses to both Rare Atom and JD Gaming, two teams that while expected to be at the top of the table, aren’t championship favourites. While Top Esports is still expected to make it to the top four, things aren’t looking too stable yet.
Prediction: EDG
Match 3: Suning vs RNG
Speaking of poor starts to the season, neither RNG nor Suning had the start they were hoping for. Suning is currently 2:4, with losses to IG, LGD and WE, all teams that are expected to compete with Suning for the bottom playoff spots. Bin especially is struggling in the top lane, as it seems like he is struggling in the current meta. Should Suning fall here, they will drop down to thirtieth place, far from where they expected to be.
RNG are currently 1:4. Coming in as the reigning champions, this isn’t where RNG, nor their fans, expected to be. Sure, three of those four losses were against good teams, but RNG should, in theory, be the number one team in the LPL. Either way, the result of this match will paint a sad story for one of these teams.
Prediction: RNG
Week 5: Day 1
Match 1: Rogue Warriors vs Invictus Gaming
The first match of the week will be an interesting one. Invictus Gaming are going through a rough patch, as TheShy and NoFe aren’t with the team. However, this shouldn’t be an excuse for a team with the calibre players that IG has. With losses to teams like LGD and OMG, IG has been flat-out underperforming across the board.
Congratulations to Rogue Warriors for picking up a win against Victory Five. While on paper IG should smash this series, IG has been struggling, and Rogue Warriors are a very scrappy team. If they manage to bring IG into the mud-fight with them, they might stand a chance to walk away with a win.
Prediction: Invictus Gaming
Match 2: Rare Atom vs JD Gaming
JD Gaming has been one of the most inconsistent teams in the LPL so far. After an amazing week one, it seems like their loss to LNG dismantled them morally. Ever since, they have had really unconvincing matches, even in their wins, like the win against Victory Five. A win here would make people believe in JDG once again.
On the other hand, Rare Atom have the chance to prove that they belong at the top of the table. If the take down LNG on Saturday and JDG on Monday, they would only be behind EDG, the only team that at the time of this article’s publication has taken down RA. After doing so well in spring, only to run out of gas, Rare Atom have a chance to return to glory in summer.
Prediction: Rare Atom
Week 5: Day 2
Match 1: Ultra Prime vs Victory Five
The second day of week five’s action features Ultra Prime and Victory Five. V5 are yet to find a win this split. While there is still plenty of time, fans are already talking about spring 2020 V5, when they went 0:16. While this match still favours their opponents, Ultra Prime aren’t likely a playoff team and should be easier to take down.
After a good enough start to the split, Ultra Prime have started to fall off. After barely beating Rogue Warriors, they fell to Suning, IG and EDG in a clean, 2:0 series. While EDG are doing well, neither IG nor Suning are at the top of the food chain right now. Ultra Prime needs to clean up their game if they want to make into playoffs.
Prediction: Ultra Prime
Match 2: EDG vs OMG
The second match of the night features OMG and EDG. EDG are currently at the top of the food chain. With Viper and Meiko looking like the best bot lane in the world, and Scout playing some of the best League of Legends he’s ever played, EDG looks ready for Worlds. It is important to note that EDG finished third in spring, so even if they fail to make Worlds by winning it all, they could make it by championship points.
However, OMG should be no pushovers. A team that many had brushed off as possibly the dead-last placed team, OMG are currently 4:2. With wins over IG and RNG, OMG have shown that they should be taken seriously. Mid laner Creme, especially, has been the standout performer for the side of OMG. With fantastic performances on the assassins, Creme can catch people off guard. EDG needs to keep their guard up, less they find themselves caught out to Creme’s assassination.
Prediction: EDG
Week 5: Day 3
Match 1: RNG vs LGD
Depending on previous results, RNG could find themselves tied up with the likes of Ultra Prime and Rogue Warriors in the standings. Having already lost four series, they have already more games in summer than they did all spring long, including playoffs. While there is plenty of time to improve, the LPL is a very competitive league, where any sign of weakness will be taken advantage of.
LGD have been consistently inconsistent so far in the LPL. They lost to BLG, to then beat JDG, then lost to Top Esports and then beat Suning. Both teams that they beat, defeated the teams that they lost to, hence LGD’s inconsistency. Shad0w has been arguably LGD’s best player, with Kramer showing up and dealing damage every game. If RNG don’t show up to this match, and LGD don’t throw, LGD could very easily walk away with the win.
Prediction: LGD
Match 2: FunPlus Phoenix vs Bilibili Gaming
Wednesday’s second match features FPX and BLG. Bilibili Gaming are yet to take down a top team. Despite doing well in their series against the top teams, BLG fell short, losing to EDG, LNG and WE in 2:1 series. Questions can be raised about multiple parts of the roster, with Aiming and Ppgod constantly being on different pages.
FPX have had a solid split so far. While their true test will be against EDG, Fpx have managed to take down everyone that wasn’t LNG. DoinB is having a monstrous split so far, and while Zeka has also impressed so far this split, it is unlikely he will be able to keep DoinB down. FPX are the clear favourites in this series, and they need to show it.
Prediction: FPX
Week 5: Day 4
Match 1: Rare Atom vs ThunderTalk Gaming
Both of Thursday’s matches should be open and shut cases. Rare Atom are a team that could pose a threat to the top-of-the-table teams. ThunderTalk Gaming are at the bottom of the table, so Rare Atom are the clear favourites here. However, it should be stated that they tend to drop games, even against lower-placed opponents. They are favoured to win, but it possibly won’t be a clean 2:0.
ThunderTalk Gaming need to find themselves this split. With multiple potential carries, ThunderTalk try to do everything at once and up doing nothing. SamD, Xiaopeng and LangX can all carry series, but TT need to decide on their identity, or they will remain at the bottom of the table until the end of the split.
Prediction: Rare Atom
Match 2: Top Esports vs Victory Five
In what will probably be an even more one-sided series than the first, Top Esports will take on Victory Five. While Top Esports has yet to show up against the best teams in the league, they’ve had little to no difficulty running over the weaker teams. Wanting to return to form, Top Esports must leave this match with a convincing win.
On the other side of the rift, V5 have little to no hope to take down Top Esports. Outclassed in every lane, with worse rotations and with less experience, Victory Five will need nothing short of a miracle to take down Top Esports. However, a similar thing was said not too long ago about JDG. And while V5 lost the series, they did manage to sneak a game off JDG. Perhaps they could do the same here.
Prediction: Top Esports
Week 5: Day 5
Match 1: Suning vs OMG
Friday’s first match will tell the viewers a bit more where these teams place. OMG managed to bully the lower placed teams so far, but they fell against bigger opponents like BLG and Rare Atom. If OMG wants to make playoffs, they will need to start showing up against bigger teams, ones that are more likely to end up in the lower half of the playoff bracket.
Luckily for them, Suning happens to be one of those teams. At the moment, Suning are vastly underperforming and currently are outside of the top ten. Should they remain underperforming, it is very possible that OMG will swoop in and take the win. However, a convincing win here could stabilize Suning, allowing them to catch up to the top teams.
Prediction: Suning
Match 2: FunPlus Phoenix vs LGD
The final match of today’s article will feature LGD and FPX. LGD have had a fairly irregular split so far, but they seem to be doing well enough to make playoffs. With Shad0w leading the charge in the early game and Kramer dealing the damage in the late game, LGD seem to have found their recipe for success. However, it is important to note that their results against the top teams tend to vary.
A team that has shown fairly little variance this split is FPX. Excluding their loss to LNG, which they could have easily won 2:0, FPX have beaten all their opponents. While their series aren’t always the cleanest, FPX know how to find a lead for themselves and how to close out a lead, making them one of the most efficient teams in the LPL. Up against a LGD squad that does tend to throw games, FPX should have an easy enough time.
Prediction: FPX
And that concludes the preview of the final days of week 4, as well as the first four days of weak 5. Be sure to come back next time, to read about the last matches of Week 5, as well as the first few matches of Week 6.
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Follow JJ on Twitter: @NeonColouredJay