League of Legends LEC Playoff Preview: Origen vs. Fnatic

This final stage of the LEC playoffs takes place in Rotterdam this weekend. The stage is set for Sunday’s grand final match, however before that Origen and Fnatic will battle it out for a chance to take on G2 Esports and challenge for the trophy.

The climax of the inaugural LEC Spring Split is finally upon us. This weekend we’ll watch three of the most accomplished European organisations of all time take to the stage in Rotterdam to fight it out in order to claim the first ever LEC trophy. Between them, Fnatic, Origen, and G2 Esports have been crowned champions of the EU LCS on 11 occasions and at least one has been present in each playoff stage since the inception of the league.

Until this year, the Saturday game on finals weekend was reserved for a 3rd place decider to distribute championship points in an otherwise pretty meaningless match-up. Thanks to the reformatting of the LEC, now two vital games take place over the weekend, with Saturday’s game determining the second finalist, and Sunday obviously deciding the Spring Split champion.

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G2 Esports have already reached the final as a result of their resounding 3-0 victory over Origen last week, and who they will face will be decided in Saturday’s exciting clash. Following their lost to G2, Origen are now forced to face an outstanding Fnatic side that have breezed past both Team Vitality and Splyce on their journey to the final three.

It’s set up to be a memorable “semi-final” between the two strongest teams from the second half of the regular season. While Origen will undoubtedly be on a low following their loss to G2, they’ll certainly be out for blood this weekend with hopes of a chance at revenge in the final on Sunday. Meanwhile Fnatic will be itching to defend their crown against their long-standing rivals, especially after the events of the off-season.

Origen

It’s no surprise that Origen have made it this far in their return to the European fold. Crafting a scary super-team in the off-season, backed by excellent support staff, was a recipe for success and their performances did not disappoint in the regular season. However, it was a surprise when they were completely dismantled in their face-off against G2 Esports last weekend, particularly when so many had Origen as their favourites to come out on top.

Origen were one of the most impressive teams in the regular season, showcasing their patient and clean playstyle to close out, slowly building their gold lead and taking over the game through strong macro shotcalling and objective control. Unfortunately, this refined playstyle was mostly absent during their series against G2 as they seemed to lose their heads following their game 1 defeat due to a clever Realm Warp play from their opponents.

It would be harsh to judge Origen purely on their misfortunes last weekend though, as they showed throughout the regular season that they are capable of taking down even the strongest of opposition. Many would argue that their “Korean-style” method of destroying the enemy Nexus led to Origen being the most remarkable side of regular season’s later stages. As a result, they were rewarded with a 2nd place finish and a bye to the second round of playoffs, securing their place in Rotterdam before playoffs even began.

Despite all of this, it’s important to remember that Origen have yet to be crowned European champions, falling to both Fnatic and G2 Esports in their remarkable 2015 season. We can expect they’ll be desperate to set the record straight this weekend by taking down both teams and finally lifting the trophy. The question is, which Origen will turn up in Rotterdam – the incredible regular season specialists, or the struggling playoff side?