What to expect from EG vs C9

It's no doubt that Evil Geniuses are in poor shape right now. After starting the year with a bang by defeating the number one ranked team in the world, missing out on the Americas RMR is inexcusable. But, enough about the past. You've read enough apocalyptic takes by talking heads on Twitter. Let's look forward towards ESL Pro League Season 17. EG's first match is against Cloud9. Let's delve into that matchup.

Underperforming Cloud9

Recently, Cloud9 have been tumbling down the rankings. To fix this, they made a change, swapping Timofey "interz" Yakushin with Timur "buster" Tulepov to improve their firepower. However, this change has not proved fruitful, with the team dropping out of IEM Katowice without winning a map. ESL Pro League will prove whether this is just a rut for C9, or if something more is at play.

• Cloud9 have slipped from #3 to #14 in the last three months

• Swapped interz for buster, but haven't seen improved results

• buster had over a 1.00 rating in only 1/8 of previous maps

• Lost 2-0 to IHC in Katowice

Languishing Evil Geniuses

Evil Geniuses have obviously been in a downward spiral. Their recent failure to make the Americas RMR has led to widespread criticism of the team and the organization as well. Recent changes to implement EG's "Blueprint" system have promoted Jerric "wiz" Jiang to the main roster. However, much like Cloud9, this recent roster move has not led to improved results. Tsvetelin "CeRq" Dimitrov , the most obvious weak link, is off the roster, but their gameplay has still floundered.

• Failed to qualify for Americas RMR

• Recent losses to yur, MIBR, and oNe

• 0-2 in Katowice Play-Ins

• Replaced CeRq with wiz, but wiz is not performing

• wiz has 0.90 rating during his time on EG main roster

Previous Matchups

Cloud9 and Evil Geniuses have faced off twice in the past six months, with Cloud9 winning both handily. Both matches ended in 2-0s with EG never getting more than 17 rounds in a series. Past results do not give much faith in Evil Geniuses, but with two new players on the server, maybe the tides will turn.

Likely Vetoes

• EG ban Vertigo; first ban in 80% of previous matches

• Cloud9 ban Nuke; permaban

• EG very likely to pick Inferno; played 9 times in last 3 months, Cloud9 lost to IHC on Inferno

• Cloud9 presumably choose Mirage or Anubis; EG have 4 map losing streaks on both

• Decider unknown. Both teams like Overpass; first picked ~30-40% for both teams

Extras

Furthermore, to fully cement the harsh climb EG have in front of them, bookmakers have given EG anywhere from 5:1 to 8:1 odds to win this match. It's a tough road ahead, but we've seen bigger comebacks.