ESL Pro League S20 Grand Finals Analysis: Eternal Fire vs. NAVI
Published: Sep 22, 2024 - Last Updated: Sep 23, 2024
From 32 teams, the competition has whittled down to just two, Eternal Fire and NAVI. They are set to duke it out for the crown of Champion at ESL Pro League S20.
The Grand Final is here: check out our predictions for the match ahead!
Eternal Fire’s small chance of victory
If Eternal Fire is going to win ESL Pro League S20, it won’t be easy. This team has already faced NAVI once during the tournament, losing that clash in a clean 2:0. Eternal Fire is warmed up now, but will need to rely on individuals going nuclear rather than any real tactical superiority. We’ve seen it throughout the tournament so far, with EF needing the likes of XANTARES and woxic to perform in order to close out matches. It’s a big ask against a well-oiled machine like NAVI.
If you’re planning to bet on the CS2 match between Eternal Fire and NAVI, there are a few markets you should be looking at. Even if EF doesn’t win too many maps, this team will never roll over and die. That’s why Rounds Over markets could be interesting here, and the same goes for Maps Under if NAVI gets the clean sweep it’s expected to.
NAVI go in as big favorites
There’s no beating around the bush. NAVI comes into the ESL Pro League S20 Grand Finals as big favorites, and will be expected to take the series with ease by fans and bookmakers alike. This team has only dropped a single map throughout the tournament so far, during the Semi-Finals against G2, and hasn’t looked troubled at any point.
NAVI is a team that likes to show its opponents who’s boss, especially when things are going well. Knife and Zeus markets are always an interesting bet with this team, especially with showmen like jL on the team. The more sensible bet is on NAVI to take the entire series, but as favorites, the odds won’t be the best.
Our prediction for this series is pretty straightforward. The best-of-five format will always favor the team with the deeper map pool, and that’s usually the better roster on paper. In this instance, that’s NAVI, despite Aleksib’s well-known struggles during best-of-fives in years gone by. EF’s permaban is Ancient, while NAVI’s is Vertigo, so there’s next to no chance you’re seeing either of those maps tomorrow. We think that NAVI will take this one, but won’t go flawless: NAVI 3:1 Eternal Fire.
