Will PSG Talon Be Able to Get Their First Upset?
Time and time again we’ve talked about how the PCS region and more specifically PSG Talon has been able to put up good performances on the international stage and manage to defy the lol odds against the strongest teams. But so far in this year’s MSI, the PCS representative hasn’t managed to impress a lot of us, and although they finished 2nd in their group, it wasn’t in the most convincing manner if we are being honest.
During the first day of the rumble stage, we saw PSG Talon struggle against Saigon Buffalo, in a game where they had an 11k gold lead at some point but failed to capitalize on their huge advantage. Ultimately PSG Talon ended up winning the game, but seeing them unable to play off their gigantic lead raised a lot of concerns.
Now they’ll have to face G2 Esports, the European representative who took down the two strongest teams of the tournament, T1 and Royal Never Give Up during their first day on the rumble stage. It’s definitely going to be a tough challenger for PSG Talon coming into this match, but let’s find out if they have the tools to take down the beloved European squad.
PSG Talon’s Early Game Has Looked Good So Far
Yes, we know that PSG Talon showed a very questionable decision-making process during the later parts in their game against Saigon Buffalo earlier on the rumble stage, but we can’t deny that their laners are capable of playing a smart early game. Saigon Buffalo had a few counter picks against PSG Talon, for example Tristana and Rell versus Xayah and Rakan, although Rell doesn’t scale in the same way compared to Rakan, she is still able to take over the lane, preventing Rakan from leaving Xayah alone.
Even if we take into account that, and the fact that Juhan didn’t manage to have a considerable impact during the early game, PSG Talon still had control over the map, mostly thanks to Bay’s presence in the mid lane. I do think that PSG Talon might try to switch a few things up in the draft now that they’ll have to face G2 Esports, a team that sure knows how to take advantage of any mistakes their opponents make during the laning phase.
If PSG Talon somehow ends up falling behind early on in the game against G2, it’s not going to be a pretty sight for them. G2 excels at playing compositions based around strong engagement and a lot of diving potential, which is a nightmare for any team that’s fallen behind during the early game and many lol betting experts agree with this.
G2 Esports is The Strongest Contender for The Title
Let’s be honest, when this year’s MSI arrived we all strongly believed that both T1 and Royal Never Give Up would roll over the competition and would end up meeting in the grand finals 100%. But during the first day of the rumble stage, G2 Esports proved all the lol betting experts wrong and took down both of them in a convincing manner. Some might say that it really wasn’t a close game and that RNG and T1 had a strong lead early on in the game, but if we look at both drafts, that’s how the game was supposed to go for G2.
Excluding the part where G2’s bot lane made some big mistakes against T1 in early game, we can say that G2 did play way better than them. All they had to do was survive until the 25th-minute mark where they would reach their 2 item power spike on their champions, especifically Yasuo and Diana, and they did it. It only took a couple of teamfights for G2 to take over the game because T1 didn’t have the strongest scaling composition in that game, allowing the European team to roll over the teamfights in the later stages of the game.
Against Royal Never Give Up, it was almost the same case although in my opinion Royal Never Give Up did show a better face than T1, but unluckily for them, they had to play against Caps, who is looking like the strongest mid laner in the world right now. His Zoe pick completely decimated RNG’s chances to capitalize on their lead, and after G2 managed to slow down RNG’s aggression and steadily closed out the game.
PSG Talon vs G2 Esports Game Information
Date: Sunday, May 22
Time: 7:00pm ET
Live Stream: Riot Games – Twitch
PSG Talon vs G2 Esports Predictions
If we look at the standings, it’s really clear that G2 Esports is the better team in this case, and by quite a lot. The G2 lineup has shown a lot of strength already and they haven’t played a single best-of-x series. I would say that they are the current best team in the MSI right now, and until any other team takes them down, it will remain that way.
I don’t think that G2 Esports will slow down against PSG Talon just because they are a weaker team compared to T1 and RNG. The PCS representative does have some tools that might help them against G2 Esports’ strong early game, especially if we consider the way that G2 is playing right, so it wouldn’t be crazy to see PSG get an early lead. But other than that, I think that G2 will completely dismantle and get closer to securing a 1st-place finish in the rumble stage.
PICK: PSG Talon to get first dragon at -139
