TH vs FNC Preview: LEC’s David versus Goliath in Round 1

With the LEC Winter playoffs around the corner, I’ll deliver my previews of each expected BO3. Starting with Fnatic against Team Heretics, which will kick off the playoffs phase this Saturday, at 6 PM CET. A reminder that for the first time in EMEA, all matches will be played in Hard Fearless Draft mode for the Winter playoffs only.

After three weeks of Regular Season, every LEC team has already showcased a glimpse of their shape coming into 2025. For two of them – Rogue and SK Gaming – it’s already time for vacations as we’ll get to see them perform again in 2 months, for the start of the Spring Split. But the players and staff in the region never stop reminding us: these first 9 games aren’t of much interest if it is for both eliminated teams. For others, it’s now time for the real deal.

Winning a Bo3 is all that matters

Even seeding is not important at all, it is just a matter of winning as many matches as possible to lift the trophy and attend the first edition of First Stand, the new international event with the champions of every major league. Fnatic (1st place in regular season with a 8-1 record) seem to have taken the place of the G2 of the last two years, as the leader that all teams want to bring down. The Little Thumb of the LEC – Team Heretics (8th place in regular season with a 3-6 record) – will be the first team that will have this opportunity.

Confirmed veterans against unexperienced rookies

It is common knowledge that Fnatic’s roster has top 2 players from the past few years at every role. You could argue with Óscar “Oscarinin” Muñoz, he is obviously the least experienced player from his team and he has still a lot more to prove than the others. But in my opinion, he is one of the two or three best toplaners in the league since he landed – in 2023. And his first showings this Winter back up this statement, with only the outstanding Kim “Canna” Chang-dong ahead of him. But when it comes to the others: they’re the most dominant or the second most dominant players in their roles since at least three or four years.

And unlike Team Heretics or Vitality superteams, it is not a roster made of “washed up” veterans. They’re currently at the peak of their game and their first 9 games together prove it. Fnatic only lost their first match against KOI because of a bad meta read, since then it’s been destruction after destruction. Beating the like of G2, KC, and GX in 27 or 28 minutes. Yes, they might not have a higher ceilling than some other promising teams. But we never saw them all together in the past. And it can for sure make a significant difference, especially with the addition of a player like Mihael “Mikyx” Mehle who transformed every team he’s been to. I am even confident that if they can make it to international events with this roster, they will perform well – at least better than the region did in the latest years.

On the other side, Team Heretics have built a roster with three rookies, and two recently confirmed players. Confirmed can even be considered a strong word for Victor “Flakked” Lirola who came out of a strong rookie year with G2 Esports in 2022 but failed to meet the expectations in 2024 with Team Heretics (7th, 5th and 7th). He is now considered the captain of the team under his own words, and he has always been aknowledged as a good teammate, the kind that build group bonds. But on the Rift, I have to say I’ve been quite disappointed by the performances of the AD Carry so far. The same is not true for the other experienced player of the team Théo “Sheo” Borile who lived up to the expectations so far and carried his team in most of their victories. The most interesting part is that he created a very good synergy with his compatriot Paul “Stend” Lardin. Both are mechanically playing very well, and always find the winning play angles for TH.

When it comes to the two other rookies, there is not much to say. They were not very expected, and they didn’t surpass those odds. Their performances are not up to the LEC level yet, but it’s too early to judge them in my opinion; their growth throughout the year will be the best indicator of whether they deserve their spot or not. One good sign at least, they’re not scared to try things and go in when they see a window. The execution is not on point though, like Kamil “Kamiloo” Haudegond’s 1v1 attempt against Rasmus “Caps” Winther in their last match.

Final Word on TH vs FNC

You’ve guessed it, Fnatic is the clear favorite for the first confrontation in BO3 of the year. On paper, this is the most unbalanced match of the week. The experience of the Black and Orange in those high-stakes games should leave no room for the young Heretics team. But I am still curious about how the jungle/sup dynamics will play out this Saturday. In my opinion, this will be the only issue at stake in this confrontation, the best jungle/sup duo in the league against the most promising jungle/sup duo in the league. How big is the gap seperating them for now?