EU LCS Match Recaps for Day 1 of Week 2

It’s time to kick off week 2 in the EU LCS, shake off the cobwebs of defeat from last week, prepare yourself for even more unusual Champion compositions, the usual kind of action packed games we’ve come to expect out of the European pro scene. Some teams have really signed on to the new way of playing the game, and some teams still need a little nudging to get there. Here’s a brief breakdown of the matches played today.

Giants vs Unicorns of Love

I have a feeling that any remaining hope the Giants had of playing traditional AD Carries is probably not going to survive much longer, with the Unicorns of Love once again proving that sometimes the best AD Carry, is actually a mage in disguise. Both teams managed to score kills in this particular showdown, but it was the Unicorns who ran the roost in this match, claiming the lion’s share of the objectives as they slowly ground down their opponents. I like seeing AD Carries in competitive play, but it might be time to make the switch Giants.

Team Vitality vs ROCCAT

Just as soon as I get finished saying it’s time to stop playing AD Carries, ROCCAT go and prove me wrong by successfully taking down Heimerdinger with Ezreal. This particular match was bloody from the get go, with both teams willing to dive right in and start swinging for the fences. ROCCAT were able to build an early lead, though Vitality did cause the game to swing in their favor with a slew of objectives throughout the mid game. Despite the impressive lead that Vitality was able to accrue, ROCCAT would not be deterred in their quest for victory, taking them down despite the gold disadvantage after yet another successful team fight in the late game. The moral of the story is, I guess, don’t write off Champions before the game is finished.

G2 Esports vs FC Schalke 04

Whew lad, this is the kind of game you get when you don’t ban Kai’Sa. To say that G2 ran away with this game is a slight understatement, with Schalke proving to be wholly ineffective when it came to shutting down mid laner Luka "Perkz" Perković. It’s hard to imagine any outcome other than victory when the mid laner is able to claim 12 kills and 2 assists in a game where G2 as a whole only claimed 15 kills. With this kind of performance, G2 are well on track to reclaiming their spot as the “Kings of Europe”.

H2K vs Fnatic

This was an interesting game both for the Champion selections, and for Fnatic’s decision to have substitute top laner Gabriël "Bwipo" Rau replace AD Carry Martin "Rekkles" Larsson. We’ve got a more detailed breakdown of this match, here.

Splyce vs Misfits

Once again, a traditional AD Carry has taken down the much beloved EU Heimerdinger. At this point, it’s quickly becoming less about who has embraced the new Meta, and more about who has the skills to ignore it. Misfits proved victorious in their showdown today, showing the world exactly what happens when you put faith in your players to do their job to the best of their ability. After a showcase like this, we could watch Misfits play all day, every day.

That’s the games wrapped up for the first day of the EU LCS Summer Split. For more on when these teams will be playing again, check out the official website, here.

(All images via Riot Games Flickr)