FlyQuest vs Team Liquid

Next up, we have an absolute must watch, a fight between the defending champions Team Liquid and a team that, all things considered, should have an edge: FlyQuest. Before we delve any deeper into the match at hand, it's imperative we mention just how insane and unexpected this one game really is.

Both teams have a reason to fight tooth and nail for every inch of the Summoner's Rift. Liquid need this win or they're out of the playoffs. Imagine that, a single game is standing in the way of such a historic, crushing defeat. To say that the pressure is mounting would truly be an understatement. Opposite them, we have FlyQuest, a team that, much like their adversaries, need to triumph in order to lock down their spot in the playoffs. They're in a much better position, but the point still stands. There's so much on the line for both teams, and yet no one's truly favored, no one has any particular hype or momentum behind their backs.

Liquid has disappointed in every conceivable way. If we had to summarize their 2020 Spring Split, the only word that would come to mind would be "abysmal" or, at best, "underwhelming". This level of play is downright unacceptable from a team with so much talent, with some of the best players to ever grace the stage, with two World Champions and arguably the best jungler Europe ever fostered. They have all the right tools to the puzzle, all the weapons one might need in an attempt to claim yet another LCS title, and yet it's not enough. Did they get complacent? Did something shift in the team behind the scenes, something we're not aware of, something that wasn't made public? We can only theorize at this point.

We know they're shifting towards a more democratic shotcalling process, but that's not paying dividends, even after many weeks of regular season play. Not only did they look worse as a team, but they're on the brink of missing out on the playoffs. Now would be a good time to revert these superfluous changes and go back to basics, to the things Liquid do best. Otherwise, their monumental failure will allow them to write yet another page of the history books.

In short, even for the biggest Team Liquid faithfuls, there's a reason for concern, especially after 100 Thieves just upset Team SoloMid and are sitting above Liquid in the standings.

Opposite them, we have FlyQuest, a team that may or may not be stronger at this point in time than they were once the split began. After swapping out Viper in favor for Solo (known for his Echo Fox tenure), they looked much better in their first game against Immortals last week. It was a clean, commanding win, and they looked rather dominant in the process. Their second game against 100 Thieves was nothing similar in no small part due to a horrendous level one blunder that basically sealed their fate. So, on the one hand, they should look better and a bit more flexible going forward (especially with Solo's ability to stay resilient and thrive even with no resources or attention, playing the weak side of the map), but we need a bigger sample size before actually coming to a concrete conslusion.

In any case, they've looked much better than Liquid over the last couple of weeks, so we have to give them the edge in this one. That said, it's not going to be easy. Liquid will come out the gates swinging and they definitely stand a chance of getting the win -- they're the defending champions after all, and they're no strangers to playing in high-pressure situations. They play their best League of Legends when their backs are against the wall, so expect an absolute barnburner that'll be decided by the slimmest of margins.