G2 Esports vs Natus Vincere

ESL One Cologne 2018,

Coming up next for the coverage of ESL One Cologne, we take a look at the restructured French team of G2 facing off against Natus Vincere. Much like the previous match-up, this will be a best of one series.

Natus Vincere :

Natus Vincere has recently come to an entirely new, strong form. Building the team around the lead gunners of S1mple and Electronic, Natus Vincere has finally found success in the team they so desperately wanted to succeed with. S1mple for a long time was the individual carrying the team to success, winning multiple MVP awards for events his team did not win. But now, Natus Vincere has built the team to be focused on supporting S1mple and using his talents to push the team to new heights. I cannot begin to tell you how many eco rounds Natus Vincere has won with a single AK-47 in the hands of S1mple. The new structure of the team has allowed so much more freedom and with it, the success of Natus Vincere has gone through the roof. High expectations from Natus Vincere are being held at this event.

Natus Vincere's map pool looks like this; Mirage is 13-2, Inferno is 8-5, Nuke is 6-2, Train is 6-2, Overpass is 5-3, Cache is 1-1, and Dust 2 is 0-2

G2 :

G2 have recently made a pretty dramatic change in their starting line-up. Riflers NBK and Apex were both put on the bench, Mixwell was dropped and Coach Smithzz was brought back into the active line-up along with Ex6tenz of LDLC and Shox returned from his wrist surgery. Making then starting five-man line-up: KennyS, Shox, Smithzz, Ex6tens, and Bodyy. KennyS will always be good in any team as long as he is the primary AWP, however, I can't say the same for the rest of the team. Even with Shox being as good as he is, coming off of wrist surgery could still be affecting him, this along with Smithzz not being in an active player role for over a year and Ex6tenz losing out on his former team LDLC way back in ESL Pro League Season 7, G2 does not look promising in the slightest.

G2's map pool looks like this; Mirage is 7-9, Inferno is 4-4, Overpass is 5-2, Cache is 4-1, Nuke is 2-2, Dust 2 is 1-1, and Train is yet to be played.

Map Pick/Ban :

This is a best of one series, so each team will ban out three maps and decider will be the one map left over. Starting with Natus Vincere, they will want to bring G2 to them by banning out the most played maps; Inferno, Overpass, and Dust 2. G2 will want to save face and will ban out Mirage, Dust 2, and Train. Leaving Cache.

Final Thoughts:

Natus Vincere should be able to win this game easily. This will be G2's first large event with this roster and though I feel some potential is there, against a team like Natus Vincere with S1mple playing in his prime and the team helping him in every round they can. G2 should crumble against the opposition. Medium bet on Natus Vincere.