AL manager's backstabbing of LPL allies causes a stir!

After AL secured a spot in the World Championship quarterfinals first, many LPL viewers began to see AL as the true contender for the S15 World Championship title. Even LPL champion mid-laner Doinb apologized during a livestream, since not long ago he believed AL's potential ceiling was too low, and that TES and BLG were the teams most likely to win. However, looking at the current situation, TES and BLG’s form is clearly not as strong as AL’s, especially since AL has not lost a single major match during Worlds, advancing to the knockout stage with a perfect winning record.

Although AL’s results are impressive, there were still many comments during AL’s matches questioning the strength of AL’s bot laner Hope. Many viewers believed that as long as Hope is in AL’s bottom lane, AL could never win the World Championship. Some fans even went to AL manager’s account to comment, urging AL manager Aixiang to consider replacing Hope next year with a stronger AD carry, such as Elk or Gala. These unreasonable remarks upset AL manager, who responded directly in the comment section to engage with fans.

AL manager Aixiang openly stated that AL is the only LPL team to have beaten three LCK teams. He challenged those who dislike Hope to watch TES and BLG instead, pointing out that their supposedly strong AD carries haven’t won a single game against LCK teams. This kind of behind-the-scenes criticism of LPL allies by Aixiang also upset many LPL viewers, especially since the World Championship is ongoing and the LPL officially promotes unity. Yet AL’s manager keeps inviting criticism on his own team, which leaves many AL fans speechless, believing that Aixiang himself is AL’s biggest weakness. Without him, AL’s reputation would be much better.

Conflict between AL and BLG exposed

After AL’s harsh mockery of TES and BLG, many AL fans worry that AL might struggle to schedule scrims in the future. Legendary LOL coach Zhu Kai once said that the best way for the LPL to win the World Championship is for TES, BLG, and AL to scrim each other and share match experience and meta understanding. If TES, BLG, and AL all bring their best strategies, the S15 Worlds will definitely belong to the LPL. (Although the LPL has official practice teams, their skill and synergy are not as strong as those of the actual World Championship teams.)

However, many LPL viewers also think that even if AL’s manager didn’t openly mock BLG, BLG would still refuse to scrim AL, since the management of both teams has long been at odds. During MSI, AL offended BLG fans with the phrase “Watch AL in international matches,” and before the summer finals, BLG’s leadership publicly mocked Aixiang in interviews. The private conflict between the two sides is severe, making future scrims between AL and BLG nearly impossible. (Do you think AL will scrim with BLG and TES in the future?)

Kanavi’s confident remarks cause unease

Since TES was heavily defeated by KT, many LPL fans have worried that TES might repeat the mistakes of the previous season, as TES tends to have fragile mental states. TES’s jungler Kanavi recently responded to TES’s poor loss in an interview, saying that TES played too hastily during the match but will learn from this experience and aim to qualify for Worlds with a 3-1 record. Kanavi’s words reminded many viewers of the previous season, when he also promised to advance to the knockout stage without losing a single match. This has many fans fearing TES might make “new history” at the World Championship.

Conclusion

I think AL manager’s criticism of fans is understandable, as AL’s bot laner Hope truly fits AL’s gameplay and tactics. Of course, AL’s Aixiang does have a tendency to stir things up. TES and BLG have been dragged down by comparisons to AL because of Aixiang. What do you think—can AL help the LPL win the World Championship? And will TES make it to the Worlds quarterfinals?