FaZe Clan and Ninjas in Pyjamas will play in the semi-finals of the ESL Pro League Season 17 group stage. As a reminder, the winner guarantees a ticket to the play-offs, but will still fight for a slot in the quarter-finals. In turn, the losing team will drop to the bottom of the table, where they still have plenty of chances.
All in all, the teams made a good start to the championship. Yes, here they played with different level of opponents. But if FaZe Clan showed class, the Swedish team barely beat paiN Gaming, getting a lot of gaps in their game.
I don't think that after such a difficult start, Ninjas in Pyjamas will suddenly wake up and tear apart the obvious favourite. And RobbaN's men are unlikely to betray themselves by continuing to play at number one.
Therefore, here I would look out for a logical victory for the FaZe Clan team. I won't say it will be a rout here, but objectively Ninjas in Pyjamas continues to have trouble in these matches.
FaZe Clan's uniform
The fourth team of the world ranking played great back in the BLAST Premier Spring Groups 2023, where they got three confident victories, including closing OG twice.
However, the European side actually fell apart in the group stage of IEM Katowice 2023, where they were defeated by Team Liquid and were left without a playoff.
However, at the start of the group stage of ESL Pro League Season 17, FaZe Clan did well, although it could not be otherwise in the game against Rooster. In general, the team got a confident victory, leaving no questions asked.
The latest results of FaZe Clan:
- A 2-0 victory over Team Spirit.
- Defeat to G2 Esports by a score of 0-2.
- Victory over IHC Esports 2-0.
- Defeat by Team Liquid, 1-2.
- Defeated Rooster 2-0.
FaZe Clan Top Cards:
- Inferno - 88% wins.
- Ancient - 67% wins.
- Mirage - 50% wins.
Let's not forget that the European team continues to stand their ground by giving up the Vertigo card.
Ninjas in Pyjamas uniforms
The seventeenth team of the world ranking, on the contrary, failed in the same BLAST Premier Spring Groups 2023, where they suffered two defeats from Natus Vincere back in the group, and then failed to cope with Astralis in the first round of the Play-In.
Next, the Swedish squad played horribly in the group stage of IEM Katowice 2023, where they quickly lost to Vitality and Outsiders to go to rest.
And at the start of the group stage of ESL Pro League Season 17, Ninjas in Pyjamas nearly pulled off a sensation. To put it bluntly, the team played very poorly, and paiN Gaming lacked the experience to shut the guys down for mistakes.
Ninjas in Pyjamas latest results:
- A 16-13 win over MIBR.
- A 2-0 win over Team Spirit.
- A 0-2 defeat at the hands of Vitality.
- 1-2 defeat for the Outsiders.
- 2-0 win over paiN Gaming.
Ninjas in Pyjamas top cards:
- Nuke - 100% wins.
- Mirage - 67% wins.
In turn, the Ninjas in Pyjamas team does not risk showing up on the Anubis card.
Meeting statistics FaZe Clan - Ninjas in Pyjamas
Last season, the teams have played one meeting - on BLAST Premier Fall Final 2022 victory went to FaZe Clan (2-1).
FaZe Clan vs Ninjas in Pyjamas
Again, it seems to me that we're facing a passing match in which there is nothing interesting. Yes, Ninjas in Pyjamas can break on one map, but no more than that.
Yet the squad can't find their game, constantly experimenting right on the fly. And if Ninjas in Pyjamas has problems with Brazilians, then what can we talk about?
Therefore, in this case, I would recommend betting on FaZe Clan to win.
