EU LCS Week 8 Preview : Battle of The Animals!

by Reece "SabrewoIf" Dos-Santos

We’re back for Week 8 of the EU LCS, some teams in high spirits and some looking to shake off a rusty weekend. Here’s what to watch out for:

Day 1- Copenhagen Wolves (7-7) vs Unicorns of Love (7-7)

While both these teams look to be locked into the playoffs, there’s still room for error as the derailed hype train duo of Roccat and Elements are only two wins behind. The week break should have provided more than enough time for the Unicorns to work on their habit of going 1-1. The Wolves should also be feeling more refreshed after having a tough last two weeks. The main focus of this match is likely to be the mid game scuffles and the team fights will surely prove entertaining. With games against Fnatic, Gambit and H2k finishing off UOL’s split, a win here would be a blessing in what is one the hardest remaining runs.

Day 2- Giants Gaming (4-10) vs Roccat (5-9)

Rather unfortunately for Giants, Roccat, MYM, and Elements, there is a huge gap between them and the other six teams in the EU LCS right now. For these four teams, every win is an enormous step away from auto relegation and for at least one of them, the seventh place slot and a secure LCS spot will be more than appreciated after a terrible split. Owning the series over Giants, Roccat should come into this game looking to not only one up one of their bottom table competitors but close the gap on the loser of Wolves and Unicorns. With an MYM game and a Wolves game in for Roccat’s last week, a dream situation would be a Unicorn victory in this week’s battle of the animals and an upset next week against the Wolves which could very well book them a playoff spot.

Day 2- Gambit Gaming (8-6) vs Elements (5-9)

Both teams could be coming into this game feeling rather deflated; Gambit having their win streak broken and then putting up a lackluster performance at IEM, and Elements, who have struggled to find any kind of harmony within each other all split. Considering that Elements are 0-1 against all of their remaining four opponents, the outlook looks very bleak for what was EU’s perfect game super team just half a year ago. Despite the IEM disappointment, Gambit look the superior team and it’s probable that Elements could pull off a demise reminiscent of NA’s Vulcun/XDG after Season 3 Worlds. I can’t imagine Froggen and Rekkles in the challenger scene, can you?

Remaining schedule difficulty (Hard to Easy)

UOL- CW, FNC, GMB, H2K

MYM- GMB, H2K, SK, ROC

EL- H2K, GMB, GIA, FNC

CW- UOL, SK, ROC, GIA

GIA- SK, ROC, EL, CW

GMB- MYM, EL, UOL, SK

ROC- FNC, GIA, CW, MYM

SK- GIA, CW, MYM, GMB

FNC- ROC, UOL, H2K, EL

H2K- EL, MYM, FNC, UOL

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by Reece "Please Don't use that Picture of me in the Wolf Hat" Dos-Santos