Second day of Last Chance Qualifier on our screens. Ahead of the final match of the first line of parallel broadcasts.
We are talking about the Team Liquid - Wildcard Gaming meeting. I won’t inflate any special hype around this match.
It is too obvious who will end up in kings here, and who will be destined for two 40s at best.
The level of command execution, without exaggeration, is on different levels. More on this below.
We figure out who will be the winner and earn the points necessary to get into the upper bracket of the playoffs.
Form Team Liquid
Team Liquid will play as the favorite in this match. This can be judged without waiting for preliminary odds from bookmakers.
The match against Nouns will be the penultimate match for Team Liquid in the Last Chance Qualifier stage. Before that, the team will play against Xtreme, T1 and Infamous.
I expect that the “liquid” will approach this match with a score of 4-2 at least. However, remembering their games for a year, you begin to doubt this.
Team Liquid looked rather toothless throughout the season in terms of LAN tournaments. The team did not hold a single successful event, failing both commercial tournaments like Riyadh Master 2022 (TOP-10) and ESL One Malaysia (TOP-12), and the only major they qualified for (TOP-9-12 at PGL Arlington Major).
Liquid were good online, but now we are not online and we need to turn on to the fullest. I'm not talking specifically about this match, because here, as for me, everything is already a foregone conclusion.
Team Liquid roster
- MATUMBAMAN
- miCKe
- zai
- Boxi
- iNSaNiA
I will not be able to share any revelations regarding the composition. The names in the club speak for themselves: they are the mastodons of competitive dota.
From the busy roster, TI 22 will be the last tournament of the series for MATUMBAMAN. Well, if he gets there.
Heroes Team Liquid
In their picks, Liquid focuses on Death Prophet (4 matches, 75% wins), Mars (4 matches, 50% wins), Slark (3 matches, 66% wins), Vengeful Spirit (3 matches, 66% wins), Marci and Pudge (3 matches, 66% of wins).
Wildcard Gaming Uniform
WildCard Gaming will be in the catch-up status in this match. I dare to assume that the odds for their victory will float around the mark of 6 and above.
For Wildcard, this is the first experience of playing on Lana as such. Previously, the team performed only within North America, and then, often being in different, not the most promising clubs.
From the above, we can notice the level of that debut LAN. Although nominally this is not The International, the level is that of a champion.
Before the match with Liquid WildCard, they will play against Xtreme and Virtus.pro. I think it's not worth hoping for something other than 0-4 in the statistics column.
After Liquid, the statistics will be already 0-6. I can't believe otherwise.
Roster Wildcard Gaming
- Yves
- Alone
- Davai Lama
- Alexxo
- sammyboy
Of the five Wildcards, Sammyboy can be singled out. The player managed to play in almost all TIR-2 teams in America: TEAM TEAM, 4 Zoomers, D2 Hustlers and others.
Heroes of Wildcard Gaming
Among the most popular Wildcard Gaming characters: Marci (3 matches, 33% wins), Faceless Void (2 matches, 100% wins), Lina (2 matches, 50% wins), Witch Doctor (1 match, 100% wins), Queen of Pain (1 match, 100% win rate).
History of personal confrontations
Previously, the teams did not play each other. This match within the Last Chance Qualifier will be the debut face-to-face confrontation between the teams.
Match outcome
As I said above, I don't expect any revelations in this match. Here at all.
Yes, Liquid in the 2022 season is far from the title of a TIR-1 team, but compared to Wildcard, this is an exorbitant level. If the Liquids are up for anything other than an early exit from the LCQ, they are bound to beat Wildcard 2-0. This is what will happen.
Bottom line: Liquid wins.
