XSE Pro League semi-final preview: A tale of fire and ice

Our headline might lead you to believe only one game will be entertaining; far from it. It’s just that these two matchups will provide drastically different games. One is a classic underdog story, the other more of a street fight.

So, let’s begin:

9z vs Alliance - Saturday, 10:00 CEST

Major playoff team or moderately successful tier 2 side, hmmm, who’ll win?

Okay okay, that’s being unfair to Alliance. They showed against Nemesis that the talent on their team can really elevate when called upon. bobeksde had an outrageous series there, easily dominating every map in their 2:1 series win.

Therein lies the problem though: bobeksde performed out of his skin, and they still dropped a map against a lower-ranked side.

9z, meanwhile, sent HUASOPEEK into TYLOO and left victorious.

Sure, they also dropped a map, but TYLOO are ranked notably higher than Alliance, and at a higher distance than Nemesis. Despite that, the South-American mix pretty easily dismantled TYLOO when it mattered, with their stars showing up in the decider on Inferno.

That kind of sets the stage for what this game will be; 9z are ice cold killers and should be in control.

If Alliance win this, it will be a pretty unexpected upset, and 9z should be mad at themselves in that timeline. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be a stomp; CS2 is a game of fine margins and dropping a map can happen. Yet we don’t really see a timeline that turns it into more than a map.

9z are the better team; sometimes it really is that simple. If they play their own game, a 2:0 is on the cards.

PARIVISION vs FaZe - Saturday, 13:00 CEST

Heat, straight fire, napalm in Counter-Strike form, etc, etc.

FaZe have come into this semi-final looking absolutely insane; every single one of their players has stepped up when asked. JBOEN looks like a superstar alongside frozen and Twistzz, with neityu looking comfortable in hard roles. Even jcobbb was fragging against BetBoom; if that sticks, FaZe are a real danger.

This is a guaranteed top 10 team if they keep playing this way.

Not like PARIVISION will be harboring any fear.

Jame’s men look reinvented with their new core. The combination of youth and experience looks to be paying off in spades. slaxejezzz has been a genuinely good player for them, his main issue right now is consistency. Fortunately, that's been alright, all thanks to HObbit’s new lease on life with dastan's motivation.

Their performance against BIG will also inspire hope in them.

They managed to shut off blameF perfectly, playing into BIG’s extremely low floor. That type of game planning is exactly what makes Jame such a dangerous opponent. FaZe will have to prove there’s real depth to their playbook to avoid getting stopped.

Still, Twistzz and EnkayJ will feel that they showed they can do this too, slowing down a red-hot Magnojez in their series against BB.

All that said, we think FaZe will pull through in the end, but it’s going to be a hard-fought series. 2-1, a few OTs, and some generational highlights.

Okay, maybe that’s hope, but can’t we have some fun?