Immortals vs Team SoloMid

Yet another one-sided affair that's bound to disappoint in more ways than one. Team SoloMid vs. Immortals certainly sounds impressive on paper, but in actuality it's going to be far less entertaining than that headline could ever imply.

For all intents and purposes, this is a match-up between a mid-tier challenger that's pretending to a higher ranking, and a team many consider the absolute worst in North America. So, frankly speaking, there's not a lot to like. TSM is obviously a household name and they've earned more than enough respect and admiration for their historic domestic success and many record-setting multi-year-long runs. Still, those days of dominance happened so long ago that they might as well be fiction. Two and a half years have passed since they last occupied the throne -- an eternity in esports terms. The entire competitive landscape changed and shifted beyond comprehension in the meantime, and the boys in black and white failed to adapt (for a multitude of reasons). They are no longer relevant, nor did they accomplish anything worthy of mentioning over the last five splits.

Still, with names like Bjergsen and Doublelift, it's downright impossible not to be intrigued whenever they step foot on stage to compete. There are many fascinating narratives coming into 2020, and most of them revolve around their star marksman. The last time he played with Bjergsen, TSM were able to dominate and win everything that was up for grabs. It was an incredible time to be a TSM fan, so it's easy to understand why so many people got their hopes up once his signing became official. Team SoloMid need a strong shotcaller in the bottom lane, someone who's going to push the pace of the game and style on his opponents. They didn't have that in Kobbe (at least not entirely), which heavily affected their play and overall potential. Kobbe was more a late game kind of guy, whereas Doublelift (at his best) contests every inch of the Summoner's Rift right from the very get-go. With another legend within their ranks, TSM is poised to dominate in more ways than one.

Whether this'll be enough to compete with Cloud9 and Team Liquid on even footing remains to be seen, however. Right now, after a fairly unimpressive showing last week, the boys in black and white need to take things one game at a time. They need to work on their synergy, nail down an identity that works for them, and work around the clock to catch up to their peers. The talent is certainly there, but they'll face an uphill battle nonetheless. Fortunately, Immortals are by no means a stacked behemoth of unparalleled strength, so TSM should, by all means, be able to get the win.

Still, if IMT decide to start with Xmithie (of Liquid and CLG fame), they might be able to trade blows with TSM and make this a lot more competitive than people expect.