VCT EMEA: Fnatic secures top spot at Playoffs with a 9-0 record

After defeating Natus Vincere in their final league match, Fnatic finished the VCT EMEA split with a 9-0 record and claimed the top seed going into the playoff stage.

With a phenomenal victory over NAVI, Fnatic finished the regular EMEA League season at the top of the standings with a flawless 9-0 record. Fnatic is the only team in the whole VCT to remain unbeaten this season, while both the top teams in VCT Americas and VCT Pacific have each suffered at least one defeat. Fnatic will play the winner of the fourth vs. fifth seed battle in the first round of the playoffs, which begin on May 22.

Fnatic vs Natus Vincere 

The best-of-three series kicked off on Fntaic’s map pick Lotus. When it comes to agent composition, NAVI and Fnatic both choose to tackle the map in quite different ways. NAVI chooses a double-initiator comp, while Fnatic chooses a double-controller arrangement. Early on, NAVI’s strategy worked well for them as they won four straight games to go up 4-0, but Fnatic finally recovered thanks to Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev’s exceptional play and tied the game at 6-6 to end the first half.

Derke and his team kept the momentum going in the second half, holding off the dangerous Mehmet “cNed” Ipek and extending their advantage to 10-7.  Although NAVI secured two more rounds on the back of Pontus “Zyppan” Eek’s fragging abilities, Fnatic recovered in time and punched a 13-9 victory on Lotus to go up 1-0.

Fnatic began the second map with the same brutality and pounded NAVI back and forth throughout the opening half to take an 8-4 lead. To redeem themselves on this map and series, NAVI had to exhibit a different side of themselves on the offensive side. NAVI captured a couple more rounds, but their tenacity wasn’t enough to propel them very far. 

Emir “Alfajer” Beder hammered the final nail in the coffin and took Split 13 – 8 for Fnatic,  securing the top spot in the EMEA Playoffs and the distinction of being the only unbeaten team in the VCT. With a staggering 29 kills and 231 ADR, Alfajer stood out for Fnatic in their impressive performance on Split.

Despite the loss, NAVI retains second place in the rankings with a 7-2 record and advances to the playoffs as the second semifinalist. Fnatic and NAVI will have to wait until the regional playoffs to find out who their opponents will be and the result of the semifinals will decide whether they will play each other again in the following rounds.

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