Fnatic have secured their first win of the 2018 EU LCS Summer Split in one of the quickest and most surprising comebacks in recent memory.
For the first 20 minutes of the game, it seemed as if FC Schalke 04 were going to roll right over the defending EU LCS champions. The kills were going their way, the gold lead was growing, and Fnatic’s star, Rasmus “Caps” Winther, struggled to gain momentum.
The game started off with Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau dying in the top lane just two minutes in. Caps died a few minutes later, which helped kickstart Schalke’s gold lead. Limiting Caps’ effect on the game seemed to be the plan of attack for Schalke, and it was certainly working through the first 10 minutes.
Despite trying to jump in fights and carry his team, S04 shut Caps down time and time again. Of the first four deaths for Fnatic, three belonged to Caps, who still leveled up much quicker than most thanks to the gold funneling strategy his team employed.
The gameplan actually worked, but it took until Caps hit level 16 for things to begin to change. With Caps ready to carry, Fnatic decided to rush at Baron. Schalke, out of position and likely surprised, were unable to stop Fnatic from taking the massive objective.
With momentum on their side for the first time in the match, Fnatic quickly pushed through mid lane, taking out everything in their path, including S04 players and towers alike. Fnatic, with their powerful mid laner leading the way, dominated Schalke in a crucial fight in S04’s base, taking out Elias “Upset” Lipp and Maurice “Amazing” Stückenschneider before destroying the Nexus to seal their first win of the split.
Both teams now sit at 1-1 after the first week of the split, with Fnatic dropping game one against Misfits yesterday and S04 defeating Unicorns of Love. The next time these teams meet will be on July 27, a little over halfway through the Summer Split.
In the meantime, Fnatic will have to focus on H2K and Vitality next week, while FC Schalke 04 face G2 Esports and ROCCAT.
