The IG owner's jealousy has fans on edge.

Not long ago, AG·AL's loss in the Petroleum Cup finals left many in the LPL esports community feeling vulnerable. Numerous veteran esports figures voiced their support for AL's owner, and Huang Xudong, a relative of IG shareholder Zhang, also expressed his disappointment over AL's loss in a post, hoping for a brighter future for AL. Huang Xudong's comments have also unsettled many AL fans, as those familiar with him know that his words carry a certain “toxic blessing” vibe, similar to Guan Zeyuan's. His well-wishes for AL's future success seem to have a hint of bad luck attached to them.

Upon seeing Huang Xudong’s “support” for AL, the IG owner humorously mocked Huang, suggesting that Huang does not regard him as a relative. Huang posted encouragement after AL's defeat, while IG, despite having a significant advantage, was overturned by TES and received no supportive posts. Many IG fans also joked that with IG's chances of qualifying for the World Championship looking very promising, if Huang Xudong were to cheer for IG in the future, it might jeopardize their qualification.

LPL's biggest dark horse faces its first defeat!

With the conclusion of the Petroleum Cup finals, many LPL viewers turned their attention back to domestic competitions, particularly the highly anticipated match between IG and WE. This match sparked much discussion among viewers, as WE and IG are very close in World Championship points, making WE IG's biggest competitor. Additionally, WE had previously upset TES in the playoffs, earning the title of dark horse team among many LPL fans. Thus, many IG supporters are eager to see if the new season's IG can defeat WE to prove their strength.

Many IG fans also wish to use this match to evaluate WEI. In the past, when IG's jungler jiejie was starting, IG easily shut out WE. If WEI cannot help IG defeat WE effortlessly, it would indicate a decline in IG’s potential. However, WEI did not disappoint the audience's expectations, as he successfully aided IG in a clean sweep against WE in this BO3. Following WE's crushing defeat to IG, many LPL viewers humorously noted that the biggest dark horse has been thoroughly analyzed.

GALA's attempt to mimic JKL fails.

Although IG's match against WE was an easy clean sweep, many IG fans were dissatisfied with AD player GALA's performance, with some viewers even suggesting that GALA hindered support player MEIKO's effectiveness. Observers of IG's recent matches may have noticed that since jungler JIEJIE was benched, support player MEIKO's form has been improving with each game, while GALA, once hailed as IG's core, has frequently made mistakes during matches. In the last BO3, he single-handedly contributed to the team's loss, leading many IG fans to hope for GALA's replacement by the management.

In the match against WE, GALA repeatedly paid homage to TES's AD player JKL, transforming into a "succubus" during team fights, often initiating engagements to help IG win battles. However, many viewers believe that GALA simply cannot be compared to JKL at this point. Despite being focused by opponents during team fights, JKL consistently maximizes his damage output, allowing IG's carries to clean up. In contrast, GALA has learned to initiate fights but fails to deal sufficient damage, with most of the damage coming from IG’s mid and top lanes during team engagements.

Conclusion.

I personally feel that IG has a strong chance of qualifying for the World Championship this season, as their current performance is improving significantly. Particularly, mid-laner ROOKIE's recent performances have surprised me, and I believe this is the closest ROOKIE has been to the World Championship. What do you think about IG's chances of qualifying? If GALA can fully replicate JKL's playstyle, could IG become even stronger?