R6 EUL: Empire Upset G2 Esports

Team Empire have secured an unexpected but dominant victory over G2 Esports, who are getting no closer to the Top 4. Virtus.pro and BDS put up solid performances, Secret got a fourth victory and even Chaos were now able to take down Rogue.

WITHOUT ACEEZ, ROGUE ARE INCREDIBLY WEAK

Maurice “AceeZ” Erkelenz was banned by Ubisoft for three matches, because his chat history appeared to show signs of match-fixing. The player states that he didn’t want to engage in match manipulation and just didn’t really pay attention to what he was saying in this conversation. He is nonetheless on the bench for the moment and has to watch as Rogue are falling in the standings. Their hopes of making playoffs are basically done with now. In theory, they would have to win all of their matches and the top teams would have to lose all of theirs. So their chances are slim.

Chaos have gotten their first EUL victory on the board. After a winless first stage, Rogue were their first victims. Pascal “Cryn” Alouane earned himself a 1.27 rating, while Leon “LeonGids” Giddens only put up a 0.78 rating on the other side. Kafe Dostoyevsky went in the favor of Chaos on a 7-4 scoreline, after the team put up a great performance on their offense.

G2 HAD NO CHANCE VERSUS EMPIRE

G2 Esports were on the road to recovery. After suffering a defeat and a tie, on Monday they were finally able to post a victory over Natus Vincere – and that after being down 1-5!

In their match versus Empire, however, they were out of luck entirely. The Russians snatched away the first five rounds, and again Niclas “Pengu” Mouritzen and company stood with their backs against the wall on a 1-5 deficit. This time, they were unable to turn the match around and gave away a weak 2-7. Aleksi “UUNO” Työppönen did his best, but Ben “CTZN” McMillan and Jake “Virtue” Graham were practically absent. Danil “JoyStiCK” Gabov used this opportunity to secure a 1.94 rating, the highest figure in EUL Stage 2 so  far. So Virtus.pro are heading in the right direction, whereas G2’s chances are based on them finally delivering solid and consistent performances in their upcoming games.

THE MAJOR PLAYING FIELD IS SLOWLY BUILDING UP

At the moment, the standings of EUL Stage 2 suggest three Major participants. BDS Esport and Team Secret are tied on 12 points each, with Virtus.pro being close by on 10 points. The next best team, Empire, would have to win two matches to get past VP and the rest. Team Secret have one crucial advantage over the other teams – they’ve already won their encounters with two of the best teams of Stage 1. They’re only waiting for their matches versus BDS and Virtus.pro. Even if they don’t manage to win these, there are still more than enough games to secure points in. The Top 2 is in reach and the Top 4 is almost a safe bet now.

BDS attained a 7-1 victory over Tempra Esports, in which all of the players delivered convicing performances. Secret weren’t as dominant against Vitality, but their 5-1 defense half on Theme Park was enough to guarantee a 7-4 map win. Virtus.pro imitated BDS by getting a 7-1 on Villa against Natus Vincere. In the first five rounds, NaVi just didn’t get into the game at all and Andrey “m1loN” Mironov took home a 1.67 rating. If it weren’t for their 6-6 versus Vitality on the first play-day, they would now be tied for points with BDS and Secret.

In the next week, we can expect some tense matches. We’re still waiting for the important duels. G2 and Rogue and slated to face off on October 5, with BDS and Secret being next on October 7. The latter will have to go up versus Virtus.pro on October 12 as well. These matches will decide who takes over the lead in EUL and snatches the first place of Stage 2.