Team Vitality vs exceL

We believe in Vitality. We really do, and that's true for the vast majority of the LoL community as well. But we'd be lying if we didn't say that their momentous hype train hasn't been derailed by MAD and Fnatic. It's not the fact that they've lost that's the problem but rather the fashion in which it all went down. Vitality failed to mount an offensive. And, well, it's not the kind of showing you'd expect from a line-up packed with veterans and some of the best players of all time.

And sure, they have no synergy and are still figuring things out as a five-man unit, but so are Fnatic, and MAD, and Rogue, and pretty much everyone else. There's no excuse. They're playing badly, they're out of sync, and they all have differing ideas on what needs to be done in game. Had they been a bit more competitive we would've been more inclined to believe in their efforts but right now, as things stand, it's frankly impossible to praise them for anything whatsoever. A strong early game, perhaps? A few good mechanical outplays? But they, too, were scarce occurrences.

It goes without saying, but this is not the kind of start Vitality was looking for, especially not after they've spent millions upon millions of dollars. Still, we're still at the very start of the competitive season, so there's really no reason to sound the alarms just yet. They *have* disappointed us, but by no means is this the be-all and end-all. They will improve and they will deliver further down the line -- that's the only possible scenario given the amount of talent and experience they have. In the interim, however, they'll probably drop a few more games to the unlikeliest of challengers. That's par for the course, and it'll make our lives a lot more complicated. How does one bet on a team as volatile as Vitality? Pretty much anything can happen, which is a nightmarish scenario for anyone looking to put their money on the line.

This time around they're up against EXCEL which, in all fairness, is a pretty one-dimensional threat. A win is by no means guaranteed, but Vitality know as much as we do that this is arguably one of the "easiest" wins they can get at this point in time. And, well, if they were to fail, that'd pretty much be a debacle of epic proportions. EXCEL have looked pretty dreadful overall, with a few good plays thrown in for good measure. They've fumbled their way through the Rift against both G2 and BDS, and there's very little that we can commend them for. They're wholly out of sync and seemingly have no synergy whatsoever which is puzzling seeing how they're one of the few teams that have retained most of their players from 2021. How, then, are they so bad? That's the million dollar question, and it's debatable whether it's even worth answering.

They're still relatively capable, but it heavily depends on their draft and early game execution. And, well, both have been all over the place lately, so don't expect any miracles. In the end, we cannot help but with Vitality on this one. They're better in every conceivable way, and their individual talent alone should be sufficient for them to get the win over EXCEL and improve to 1W-2L.