G2 Esports vs FC Schalke 04

For our first match of the day, we have an absolutely exciting clash between the former "kings of Europe" G2 Esports, and an up-and-coming contender in Schalke 04. This is, without a doubt, the most exciting game of the week, and the reasoning is simple.

Both teams are absolute powerhouses, although it's important to highlight that they don't exactly share the same trajectories. G2 Esports is coming into the sixth week at the top of the region, although not with an immeasurable amount of hype -- and their one-sided loss to Origen last week is to blame.

One thing has to be made clear -- they're still an absolute powerhouse. They're the number one team for a reason, and they will almost certainly remain at the top for the foreseeable future. They're just unfathomably strong, at least when compared to their current opposition. They have the most skill, the most flexibility both in-game and draft-wise, and they're all experienced grizzled veterans that have mental fortitude in spades.

That said, they're also somewhat anarchic in their play. They're perfectly aware of their strengths and that, as ludicrous as it might seem, is their biggest weakness. There's an overabundance of skill and mechanical prowess within their five-man line-up. They're all professionals and they've been playing on the biggest of stages for years now. It really doesn't get any better than their starting five, and yet they're too willing to experiment and slack off. They're not doing it because they're immature, but because they can.

They can start the game off on a five thousand gold deficit and still win the whole thing -- that's a certain type of hubris that's kind of justified. They're so incredibly flexible in the draft that they want to flex their muscles and show off, but also experiment and enter uncharted lands. They want to see how far they can go before settling down on a meta-centric team comp.

Against Origen, however, they drafted like like amateurs. They were overly confident, and it made no sense -- especially considering the fact that Perkz spoke so highly about Origen just a day prior. Locking in Cassiopeia for Caps (who eventually got solo-killed by Nukeduck, of all people), a late game insurance pick in Sivir for Perkz, and a blind Pyke for Mikyx were all just complete disrespect picks.

To top it all off, they went for Sylas in the top lane -- a champion that currently has a zero percent win rate in the region. There was little room for error when it came to their comp, and they failed toe execute it properly. That might even be an understatement.

G2 were playing from behind, they were constantly on the back foot, and were simply outclassed as a five-man unit.

So we're left to wonder -- did Origen really beat G2, or did G2 beat themselves? It's impossible to know right now, and we'll have to wait a little bit longer before being able to find out. Either way, G2 are entering this week with less hype and momentum. We don't know how they'll react to this, but chances are -- they're angry, and they want redemption. They want to step up and regain all of that immense confidence that they had going into their game with Origen, and the path to redemption starts with Schalke 04, a worthy contender in their own right.

Speaking of Schalke, they haven't exactly been on fire over the last couple of weeks, for reasons unknown. Even in their two recent wins, they were unexpectedly mild, subdued, almost scared. It's a shocking sight, seeing how we were accustomed to their unfiltered (but somewhat calculated) aggression and bravado. They lost to both Origen and Team Vitality, which makes them a very solid contender in the making -- they're just not ready to step up into the spotlight. At least not yet.

That doesn't mean they're not dangerous -- they are, and then some. With exceptional players in each and every role, this iteration of Schalke is a force to be reckoned with, but they have been looking somewhat unconfident in their last outings. They're no longer proactive, and it seems as though they think twice before going for a play, which is making their plays much more telegraphed. Not to mention the fact that they've been making individual errors left and right. Players getting caught out of position at the worst possible time was perhaps the flaw that most defined Schalke's play over the last two weeks.

We're going with G2 Esports on this one, and with full confidence. Their one loss didn't hurt their stock too much, and betting against them would simply be ill-advised at this point. That said, Schalke have the tools at their disposal to make this into one heck of a game.