The League of Legends EWC Esports World Cup is about to kick off. The oil cup's schedule is very compressed: each group plays three BO1s and two BO5s in a double-elimination format, and everything finishes in only three days. Four teams will be eliminated on the very first day. However, the schedule, though tight, is still fairly convenient for Asian audiences, as matches begin at 5 PM.

After four groups battle it out to determine eight advancing teams, the knockout stage will be single-elimination BO3 (with a BO5 final), lasting four days in total, and the oil cup champion will be decided. The three LPL participating teams face significant pressure. All three groups have Korean teams in the ADC role. Although there are two qualification spots, Group A includes G2 and DK, while Group D has LYON and HLE—both Western teams are no pushovers. AL and JDG risk being eliminated early.

Xiaoxiao reviews the finals and calls out Xun

Even though the Mid-Season Invitational has ended, the BLG finals are still generating buzz. Many people are currently reviewing the matches. IG legend Sun Yalong is the biggest "Bin supporter." A few days ago, he posted a long thread targeting Viper, but after being criticized, he deleted it. Then he started reviewing the pick/ban phase and finding fault with Xun. Sun Yalong believes Xun wasn't clean in the decisive game either. After four bans on Vi, they voluntarily let it through, and it ended up being as questionable as Bin's performance.

Xiaoxiao's point is simple: Xun's champion pool, like Bin's, is insufficient. Honestly, while Xun performed well in earlier games, he had flaws in the final match. In two team fights, he locked onto Zeka instead of focusing on the ADC first. But looking at the entire BO5, the jungle player definitely gave his all—without him and Knight, they wouldn't have made it to the decisive game. In contrast, Bin got overwhelmed in every single game.

Zeus pressures teammates in the decisive match

After HLE won the championship, they shared the team's victory voice comms. In the final team fight of the decisive game, BLG went for Baron, and their top laner, jungler, and ADC were killed. As they were about to finish, the whole team was excited, with Delight shouting in celebration. But Zeus remained calm. Since BLG's mid and support were still alive, he pressured his teammates: "I told you not to feed." He repeated the same phrase three times before Zeka responded, "Got it."

Not until both of BLG's nexus turrets fell did the ADC say, "I'm about to die." Then Zeus said, "Go ahead and die—it doesn't matter if you die." Staying so calm while about to win the championship shows that Zeus is truly a big-stage player. His shout was really effective. His teammates thought the victory was secure, but Zeus knew that Knight's Aurora dealt high damage. If the nexus turrets hadn't fallen and the two carries were taken out, the game might not have been over. That's what a world-class top laner looks like.

TES's new split roster confirmed

The transfer window for the LPL's second split is about to close. All teams' roster adjustments are now just waiting for official announcements. TOP Esports, which was unexpectedly eliminated after losing to a Vietnamese team at MSI, has confirmed a support swap. Fengyue and Zhuo will exchange places. In the next split, Zhuo will partner with JackeyLove, while the top lane remains Zuian. Lao9 hasn't returned yet; Zuian will still start in the new split. Compared to the MSI roster, only the support has changed.

Swapping Fengyue for Zhuo is definitely a big upgrade. After adjusting for so long, Zhuo's performance in NIP has been clear to everyone. Although Zuian struggled a bit during the mid-season tournament, he has potential worth developing. With the core unchanged and the support strengthened, and with four World Championship slots available and a decent S-tier points total, TOP Esports seems solid again. Everyone laughs at TOP, but who doesn't want to see them compete internationally?

Conclusion:

Being able to stay calm and command his teammates while about to destroy the enemy base and win the championship—Zeus is truly strong. Comparing him to Bin, the gap is enormous. Zeus has superior skill, a very team-oriented playstyle, and the ability to rein in his teammates when they're about to throw. Just that calm leadership alone is something Bin could learn from for a lifetime.

So, what do you think—is TOP Esports a safe bet for the World Championship?

Feel free to leave a comment and discuss!