fnatic and 9z will meet in the first round of the lower group stage of IEM Dallas 2023, where they will fight for the right not to be eliminated from the championship after the first game day.
I do not think that the Latin American team is capable to change the usual picture of the world, and in terms of play 9z does not stand out. Here we must also take into account that in Rio de Janeiro the teams had time to play each other, and then fnatic was able to close.
Yes, today the European team is playing with a substitute, and the old man is clearly not yet able to bring this level. Still, it should be easier with Latin Americans as they are weak. So here I would lean on fnatic to win.
fnatic uniforms
The fourteenth ranked team in the world failed at IEM Rio 2023 and then played horribly at the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 and never made it to the play-offs after losses to Monte, GamerLegion and Into the Breach.
After a brief pause, the European side even qualified for the Gamers8 2023, managing to beat such strong opponents as Sprout, 500 and Looking4Org in the qualifiers.
However, fnatic showed nothing at the Long Cogneg of the group stage of IEM Dallas 2023 as they managed to suffer a defeat at the hands of MOUZ. You can complain about the substitution, but f0rest didn't do much to spoil the overall picture of hopelessness.
Latest fnatic results:
- Victory over Sprout with a score of 16-14.
- Victory over GTZ with a score of 16-6.
- Victory over 500 with a score of 19-16.
- 2-0 win over Looking4Org.
- Defeat by MOUZ 9-16.
Best fnatic scores:
- Overpass - 67% wins.
- Ancient - 64% wins.
- Vertigo - 55% wins.
Interestingly, the fnatic team has recently started giving up on maps Mirage.
Form 9z
The 42nd ranked team in the world managed to fail at IEM Rio 2023, where they did not beat anyone at all, but after that they even managed to qualify for ESL Challenger Katowice 2023.
On the other hand, the Latin American side recently reached only the semifinals of the CCT South America Series 7, where they suffered a dead game against Sharks Esports.
As for Long Soppeg in the group stage of IEM Dallas 2023, here 9z expectedly Ledgeila Heroic. Yes, the Latin Americans tried to wake up in places, but still the difference in class and level of preparation is evident.
The latest results of 9z:
- A 2-1 win over MIBR.
- A 2-0 win over W7M Academy.
- A 2-0 win over Paquetá.
- 0-2 defeat to Sharks Esports.
- A 9-16 defeat to Heroic.
Best scores 9z:
- Ancient - 88% wins.
- Nuke - 83% wins.
- Mirage - 80% wins.
- Inferno - 75% wins.
In turn, the Latin American team has not played on the Vertigo map for a long time.
Meeting statistics fnatic - 9z
In the current season, the teams have played one meeting - fnatic (2:1) won at IEM Rio 2023.
Prediction for the match fnatic - 9z
The substitution factor in fnatic is troubling, because in the first game f0rest was nothing. And yet against 9z, I wouldn't discount the age, as the Latin American team is straightforward.
All in all, if the fnatic backbone gets their hands together, they can send 9z home with no problem. So in this case I would recommend betting on a fnatic team win.
