What to expect from Liquid v. Spirit

Time sure flies quick as Liquid finally debut their new international roster on LAN. This match was also supposed to be the glorious entrance of Danil "donk" Kryshkovets to the world of tier-one LANs, but unfortunately for us, fortunately for Liquid, that has been delayed following visa issues on Spirit's side. This will surely set the pace for Liquid's team as a strong result here would indicate Liquid is all revved up for the 2024 season, but a slow start could spell early issues for the ambitious lineup.

Liquid: rising to expectations

There's not much to say about Liquid since the team has barely played any officials yet. They've defeated every domestic North American team they've come across in the RMR Open and Closed Qualifiers along with the IEM Chengdu Qualifiers bar M80, who defeated Liquid first in a BO1 and later in a BO3. They just have to hope that M80 caught the team by surprise and those losses were simply early hiccups and not indicative of faltering performance.

• Time to see Casper "cadiaN" Møller back on LAN. Can the traditionally weaker AWPer stand up to Dmitry "⁠sh1ro⁠" Sokolov and give a reason to continue his infamous hoops and hollers?

• Mareks "YEKINDAR" Gaļinskis must regain his entry prowess on this roster; will the LAN environment prove beneficial or detrimental?

• Rubber meets the road for Felipe "skullz" Medeiros, can he withstand the pressure of T1 CS?

Spirit donk-less

There's no beating around the bush. Spirit don't have their star player donk in for this event. While we're all disappointed his T1 debut must be postponed, Liquid are surely breathing a sigh of relief . This is now a must-win from Liquid to show that they have what it takes to be a dominant T1 force.

• Both donk and Boris "⁠magixx⁠" Vorobiev are out of commission for this tournament. Ouch.

• BLAST is Dmitry "sh1ro" Sokolov's return to competition, is he still a top-tier player?

• Myroslav "zont1k" Plakhotia is the team's second star rifler sporting a 1.12 rating over the last three months, he will need to put on a carry performance to win the match.

Previous Matchups

As Liquid have yet to play internationally with the new roster, they have not yet played Spirit with this core.

Likely Vetoes

• Liquid ban Vertigo (this iteration of Liquid continues the streak of hating Vertigo)

• Spirit ban Inferno

• Liquid pick Anubis (Often picked first, have a 100% winrate)

• Spirit pick Ancient (Comfortable home map)

• Decider Mirage (Both teams will be happy with a pug-like map)

Extras

Betting sites are heavily favoring Liquid in this matchup, no doubt due to Spirit playing with two stand-ins, coach included. This event will likely be a wash for Spirit as they regroup and look at hit Katowice with full strength. For Liquid, this event is paramount to begin the year on a confident note and set the tone for the squad.