Team Liquid broke G2 Esports’ perfect record in the 2020 World Championship, but it’s too soon for North American fans to celebrate.
Team Liquid secured its first victory in the main event against no other than G2. The North American squad is finally showing signs of life after two defeats against Machi Esports and Suning. While the victory comes when the team needed it the most, it’s too early to get excited about Team Liquid.
The match against G2 wasn’t so much about what Liquid did, but instead what G2 didn’t do. G2 gave up first blood at level one and it was downhill from there. The European squad had good moments and found the necessary picks, but overall, G2 seemed to be out of it. G2 picked the wrong times to engage and overcommitted, practically running at Liquid. The NA team was smart enough to take advantage of that.
The victory will give Team Liquid the boost of confidence the team needs as it heads to the second half of the group stage. Liquid needs to pick up at least two victories in order to keep the dream alive. One win is not enough to guarantee the second seed, especially with Suning and Machi Esports giving their all in every match.
This game reignited the EU vs NA narrative. If Team Liquid can challenge G2, the same way it challenged MAD Lions in play-ins, perhaps the gap is not as broad as people believe.
North American squads are having a difficult time finding their footing at Worlds. FlyQuest picked up a key victory over Unicorns of Love, but seems like it won’t be able to get much more in group D. Team SoloMid remains winless and is facing LGD Gaming next.
North American fans can breathe but shouldn’t plan any celebrations just yet. Group A returns to the stage on October 8 for the final round of games.
