[Worlds 2020] Will GEN guarantee an LCK team in the finals? Or will G2 prove to be EU's last hope?

Oct 17, 2020

In the last quarterfinal match of the 2020 LoL World Championship, Gen.G will be facing G2 Esports for the last ticket of the semifinals, where they will be facing DAMWON Gaming.

GEN is a team that likes to play by the books, where their strengths lie in strong laning and teamfighting, whereas G2 likes to create anomalies around the map, and are masters of playing out their game at their own pace.

G2 is a team that single handedly raised EU’s status as a region. It only took them two years to be considered one of the best in the world, as they’ve proven time and time again that they’re able to perform on par, if not better than teams from the East. Much of their international success raised the bars for teams in EU, and continues to raise the standards of the LEC each year. After G2’s quarterfinal matchup was finalized, the top laner for G2, Wunder, showed his confidence in playing GEN in the quarterfinals through Twitter.

Although G2 hasn’t shown surprise picks like they did last year with top lane Pyke and bot lane Syndra, they still remain unpredictable.

Especially in a Bo5, G2’s flexibility will prove to be a nuisance for a team that likes to stick by the book. Individually, however, many people argue that players on GEN have an edge over G2. GEN’s bot lane, Ruler and Life, proved why they’re considered the best in the world, and Rascal continued to show consistency in the top lane. However, Clid and Bdd have not played as well as they did during the Summer split. It's a worrying trend for GEN, as the mid-jungle duo are the most important players in the current competitive meta.

GEN’s strongest win condition relies on their bot lane. Currently, it’s hard to find a bot laner that looks stronger than Ruler, and GEN will have to utilize him well to triumph over G2. While G2’s support, Mikyx, continues to look strong throughout the tournament, there have been times where Perkz ended up getting caught out on numerous occasions, so the bot lane matchup will most likely go in GEN’s favor.

On the flip side, G2’s strongest win condition will rely on their mid-jungle duo. While both junglers of the team have not looked the strongest, G2’s Caps, played consistently throughout the tournament, whereas GEN’s Bdd failed to live up to his status. While he’s 2W on Lucian, 1W on Orianna, 1-1 on Azir, and 1W on Sett at Worlds, his in-game performances have been poor at best. His Orianna game vs TSM during the group stages is a prime example of how poorly he’s been performing at this year’s Worlds, and he, alongside Clid, will have a huge target on their backs in the upcoming matchup.

G2 has a history of beating the strongest LCK teams on the Worlds’ stage. From 3-1’ing both T1 and DWG during last year’s Worlds, their confidence in being able to take down Korean teams is at an all time high. Will G2’s journey at Worlds look similar to last year? Or will GEN be able to defeat G2 and guarantee an LCK team in the finals?