Schalke 04 Eliminates Fnatic 3 to 0 from the LEC Playoffs

It was a somber day for all Fnatic fans, but Shalke04 was ecstatic. The boys in blue, as they’re sometimes called, made short work of beating Fnatic and swept them to stay strong in their 2021 run of the LEC Spring Split.

When Fnatic was eliminated from the playoffs, the organization finished in the top three for Europe, which hasn’t been done since the Summer Split in 2016. Then, the LOL roster looked much different with YellOwStaR, Rekkles, Febiven, Spirit, and Kikis. Ultimately, they were swept by the team H2K Gaming.

Shalke04 looked decisive and precise throughout all three of the games played. Many fans didn’t expect the team to play well because they saw their postseason. However, they went from forcing the G2 clan to play those five games to eliminating Fnatic effortlessly.

What Happened

It really felt like Shalke04 knew just how to capitalize on the weaknesses of Fnatic in this series. After the first game, Shalke04 turned the over-aggression from Fnatic against itself. That came to be the problem plaguing Fnatic throughout the entire season. During the LEC playoffs, it reared its head again with so much over-aggression being thrown about and hitting the team hard.

In the third game (the finals), Fnatic actually won a huge fight in their bottom lane. From there, they decided (poorly) to continue diving to get behind a turret to score an additional kill for Abbedagge. However, that 21-year-old mid laner was able to turn the fight, so he grabbed a triple kill instead of getting KOed himself.

We’re not trying to take away from the amazing performance of Shalke04 here. They were truly the better team during the LEC playoffs. It showed through because of their high level of patience and confidence to take on fights without fear.

Most people thought they were going to make significant mistakes and be over-aggressive just like Fnatic. If that had happened, this might have had a different outcome. Luckily, they kept their cool and focused on their strategy to make very smart decisions – all without the team throwing their lead throughout the series.

Meanwhile, we have plenty of questions about the future of the Fnatic team. This has been their worst season so far, and they finished so badly. That actually hasn’t happened since 2016. Clearly, there is something seriously wrong with their tactics and/or lineup. We feel that something must change with the Fnatic team if they’re going to persevere and get back to being on top.

Conclusion

What does that mean for Shalke04? They aren’t finished. Now that they beat out against Fnatic, they are facing Rogue for the next matchup. The LEC Spring Split isn’t over yet! While Rogue has different tactics than Fnatic, you never know what they’re going to do. We feel that Shalke04 has a good chance of beating the next team, but it’s bound to be a challenging series.

Still, we’ve seen a lot so far, so anything is possible for the LEC playoffs. In fact, you never know how it’s going to end until it’s over!