Team SoloMid vs Team Liquid

A fight between Team Liquid and Team SoloMid might *seem* enticing at first glance, but make no mistake: this is as far from a competitive match-up as it can get. Team Liquid are, undoubtedly, the frontrunners to win the LCS Spring Split. Team SoloMid, on the other hand, are all but guaranteed to finish near the very bottom of the standings. There's just no other way to put it, really. And don't let their pedigree or the names on their line-up fool you: they're every inch a bottom-tier dweller.

And that's a surprise, to say the least. They had all the right tools to work with -- all the right players (some of which have contracts that go up in the millions), a breadth of experience, a seemingly capable coaching staff, and more than enough time to get on the same page and build up a bit of cohesion. In actuality, however, they're one of the worst teams in North America right now, despite investing millions upon millions of dollars on a line-up that's packed with superstars and even a bit of promising rookie talent. But without any synergy between them, without a cohesive identity to call their own, Team SoloMid have struggled in every which way, regardless of whom they were up against. As far as competitive League of Legends goes, they're doing nothing right. And that holds true for both their individual play as well as any team-wide efforts. There's just nothing to praise them for — not even a single thing. No one's playing well, they aren't setting up objectives correctly, they're extremely passive, inert, and unwilling to trade blows -- probably because they've been burned far too many times in the recent past. They can't get off the ground and it's becoming a worrying trend with the boys in black and white. To make matters even worse, we're basically at the halfway point of the split. This means that they have just a couple of weeks left before the playoffs come around and TSM, in this incarnation, simply won't be able to do much. Heck, they won't be able to do anything at all if their recent level of play is any indication. What this team needs -- other than a couple of changes to their starting line-up -- is a more seasoned coaching staff, rather than a former (legendary) player-turned-coach, because they obviously lack leadership (both in-game as well as out of it). Their drafts have been horrendous, and it's like they're not experienced veterans at all, despite having some of the most long-standing pros the world of competitive League has to offer. Huni, PowerOfEvil, and SwordArt alone should've been enough to warrant a spot higher up the standings, with Spica and Lost filling in the blanks. But it just wasn't meant to be -- and we're putting it mildly here. They've been getting outclassed and outmuscled by nearly everyone, and don't let the fact that they have two wins on the board fool you either -- both wins were basically gifted to them on a silver platter.

It's just mind-boggling, really. And it probably won't change any time soon. Four weeks or so just isn't enough time, at least not as much TSM needs. And to make matters even worse, they're about to face the cleanest and most commanding team in North America -- as if their confidence and self-belief weren't shaken enough already. They lack the tools which are necessary to compete on even footing with a team like Liquid. And, frankly, they're not even close in that regard. Expect a one-sided beatdown, with Team Liquid emerging victorious in a sub-thirty minute win.