ENCE started PGL Major Copenhagen with high ambitions. Their previous results had been excellent and there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that a team of their caliber would survive the first stage of the Major.
But as soon as the tournament began, it became clear that ENCE were not in good shape. We don’t know what happened internally between IEM Katowice, where they finished 5th – 6th, and the start of the Copenhagen Major. But something must have gone wrong.
ENCE’s Results
ENCE started the competition with a defeat against Imperial Esports. The Brazilians are currently still in the race (2 W – 2 L), so it’s not like Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander’s team lost against one of the weakest teams in the race. But they shouldn’t have lost the match, especially after winning the first half 8 – 4. The final score was 19 – 22.
ENCE is currently ranked 10th globally while Imperial is ranked 26th. But under pressure, a lot of things can go wrong even when you’re the clear favorite.
In their second match, ENCE encountered KOI and won 16 – 12. This was another sign that they were in bad shape. To struggle against a team that’s not even in the top 25 and hasn’t achieved anything significant so far is a failure in and of itself.
In round 3, ENCE were completely destroyed by paiN Gaming ocn Nuke. The score was 13 – 3. This defeat looked awful but many fans still had hopes because the team’s next match was against FURIA, who had lost the first two matches and then won the third against KOI.
But as it turned out, FURIA were hungry to win and some of their players happened to be in great shape. Marcelo “chelo” Cespedes and Kaike “KSCERATO” Cerato played incredibly well, ending the match with a +19 and a +12 kill differential.
For ENCE, this failure is unlikely to result in roster changes. But something will need to be done to ensure that the rest of the season doesn’t go the same way.
Header image credit: PGL
