LEC SATURDAY

(-200) FC Schalke 04 v Astralis (+150)

(-120) Team Vitality v Excel Esports (-110)

(-230) Fnatic v SK Gaming (+175)

(+275) Misfits v G2 Esports  (-400)

(+160) MAD Lions v Rogue (-200)

 

LEC finishes their week on Saturday: VIT look to continue their streak against XL, Rogue will try to rally against MAD, G2 is likely to put an end to Misfits’ resurgence, FNC may be capable of cutting down SK, and S04 will try to snap their loss streak against AST. let’s check into the picks.

 

Captain

Larssen ($11,400)

While he costs a pretty penny, Larssen has consistently shown himself to be the most economic captain in the LEC, raising consistently fantastic performances against non-G2 teams at what is, in my opinion, an unbeatable price. He lets you pick up a second mid laner which is a much coveted position, and his opponent in Humanoid has been extremely inconsistent; a mirror image to Larssen himself, who is remarkably consistent. If you would prefer to choose a cheaper captain, I’d actually recommend Crownshot due to his low cost, high resource pull, and XL’s weak support being incapable of punishing him in the laning phase.

Alternatives to consider: Crownshot ($10,800)

 

Top Lane

Odoamne ($6,400)

Similar to Larssen, the only time Odoamne flops is up against G2’s Wunder, who is the best top laner in the league and likely the west. Thankfully, his opponent is only Armut, who has been a solid, although middle of the road top laner that’s lacked the highs of Kryze, Odoamne, Jenax, or Wunder. Odo’s steady laning and relatively versatile champion pool will do him good against the MAD Lions top laner, who has primarily found his highs on a majority of bruisers. I wouldn’t recommend anyone else, but if you’re willing to shell out the big bucks: G2 Wunder has a great match-up versus HiRit, and one could argue he’s worth it.

Alternatives to consider: Wunder ($7,400)

 

Jungle

Inspired ($6,800)

Something about Polish junglers; Jankos and Inspired have easily been the top two this split, and Inspired’s capability to cover and facilitate his laners has caused Rogue to be placed firmly at the top of the standings, no questions asked. The jungler has an admirable 6.04 KDA and comes in cheap on Saturday, his match-up against Elyoya is irresolute, but favorable nonetheless. For a real curveball of a secondary jungle option, I’d recommend Skeanz: yes, Skeanz. The Vitality jungler, despite routinely playing awful, has had a few good games and gets to play against XL’s Dan, who has basically architected XL’s downfall alongside Czekolad and Tore, I think Skeanz could begin his redemption arc against Dan.

Alternatives to consider: Skeanz ($7,000)

 

Mid Lane

Nisqy ($7,400)

Fnatic’s mid laner has shown promise upon his reentrance to Europe alongside jungler Selfmade and ADC Upset: Nisqy’s supportive play style is in good hands. While opponents SK are tough to handle, enemy mid laner Blue has shown weakness in the past; particularly in the early season, although I think the combined pressure of Selfmade and Nisqy should be enough to make him crack and allow the Fnatic 2v2 to radiate that pressure onto their powerful bottom lane. Otherwise, I’d recommend Abbedagge from Schalke if you think they can finally snap their bad mojo: Abbe has been one of the only players, in my opinion, that’s been playing well on the squad.    

Alternatives to consider: Abbedagge ($7,000)

 

ADC

Crownshot ($7,200)

Vitality’s bottom lane will be featured on this list: I do not trust Vitality, but I think they are better than Excel; and especially when you consider their bottom lane as a 2v2. Crownshot receives a majority of the resources on Vitality following his acquisition from free agency and for good reason: he is an extremely hard carry and a selfishly oriented player which comes to his advantage on a dumpster fire like Vitality. If VIT is to win, it’s going to be through their bottom lane, so picking him up in a favored match-up like versus Excel is ideal. For a different, safe option, pick up Rogue’s Hans Sama.

Alternatives to consider: Hans Sama ($7,600)

 

Support

Labrov ($5,200)

I recommend picking up VIT’s bottom lane as a pair for the same reasons mentioned above; big resources going into Crownshot also gives Labrov more tools to use to try to take the win. Labrov has been a solid support (although not remarkable) since his inception, but Tore has looked worse and worse since leaving Roccat. There’s a few other good options for support: Mikyx is solid but expensive, but I’d push you towards LIMIT; one of the only other players that I think have a good amount of potential on Schalke.

Alternatives to consider: LIMIT ($5,000)

 

Team

Fnatic ($5,400)

Fnatic’s upswing has come off the proper integration of their mid-jungle, better performances from Bwipo, and Upset returning to his solid form after a mediocre stint in Origen. Fnatic has a close match versus SK, but they bring solid momentum and a more cohesive mid jungle relative to what their game plan is in game. If you want a cheaper option, I’d recommend Rogue.

Alternatives to consider: Rogue ($5,000)

 

Stacks:

Odoamne & Larssen

Rogue’s solo laners have been impressive this split and both have showcased considerable growth since the last split: Odoamne was Schalke’s best clutch factor and most consistent player throughout 2020, and Larssen was always considered a prodigy that needed more time; he got his time, and now he’s the next big thing in EU middle lane.

 

Crownshot & Labrov

VIT’s bottom lane is a standout hit on a relatively poor roster. Crownshot’s massive resource share is for good reason: he’s a specialist in turning those gold advantages into high damage numbers. By his side is support Labrov that has shown capability in the past in effectively enabling his ADC. There was nothing wrong with Comp, but I don’t think he had the raw muscle Crownshot had as far as gold carrying capacity is concerned.

 

Selfmade & Nisqy

Finally, FNC’s mid jungle rounds out the roster: Nisqy’s supportive mid lane style is worth its weight in gold in FNC’s multiple carry positions; especially jungler Selfmade, known for playing relatively greedy but paying off well with huge damage numbers and capable objective yields. Both of these two are worth looking into for a capable mid-jungle package.

 

Top Picks: Larssen, Rekkles, Wunder

G2 players and Rogue comprise top picks; surprise surprise. However, each of these guys come with good reason: Larssen targets MAD’s Humanoid, a historically inconsistent player with a propensity for getting caught. Rekkles and Wunder target Kobbe and HiRit, two players on Misfits with relatively low carrying capacity and with the potential for being exploited.

 

Top Value: Abbedagge, Crownshot, Labrov

Each of these players are redeemers on otherwise underperforming teams: Schalke has slumped all the way from beating both G2 and S04 to out of play-offs, Crownshot and Labrov are near the bottom with Vitality, but individually show promise, and Crownshot makes good use of the gold that’s poured into him