Cloud9 vs Evil Geniuses Prediction: No Sensation

Prediction for the ESL Pro League Season 17 Cloud9 vs Evil Geniuses match will take place on February 22th. Who will turn out to be stronger? Check the team conditions! Several betting options are available.

Cloud9

Cloud9 is going through a challenging period. Replacing interz with buster involves many changes in the playlist, multiplied by the unsuccessful start of the game of the new roster. If the team lost important matches earlier, then at IEM Katowice, there was a defeat against IHC Esports.

The impact of substitution on tournaments was at a low level. The HLTV rating was 0.88, with a kill-to-kill difference of - 22. The average damage was 58 units. The only successful maps were Vertigo vs. ENCE: Timur literally dragged his teammates into the main stage. But if earlier interz did it regularly with good indicators and was almost the best support in the world, now two players in the Cloud9 team cannot correctly support with fire.

Even if we admit that the defeat by the Mongols was an unfortunate misunderstanding, then serious questions arise about the future of this composition. Of course, Cloud9 will come out as a favorite against all tier-2 teams, and sh1ro and Ax1Le factors will be enough to reach the playoffs, even at S-tournaments. But the organization wants to fight for trophies, not regret annoying failures.

Evil Geniuses

Evil Geniuses appear as ESL and BLAST partners at prestigious tournaments but as outsiders. The team has stable defeats against top opponents. Recently, there was a resounding victory against Heroic at BLAST Premier: Spring Groups 2023, but other failures consolidated it.

Evil Geniuses, even in the Play-in stage for IEM Katowice 2023, has become one of the worst teams according to statistics. There are problems in almost all metrics: 42% of rounds won, 46% of open duels won, and 16% of successful exchanges. The positive trend remained only in pistol rounds: 66% of wins in 6 attempts, but this is against Sprout (40%) and fnatic (40%). This composition may have a game in the first rounds, but there is some stable stupor at the end, which is why the maps are played.

Evil Geniuses has not been listed even as a dark horse for a long time. It doesn't make sense to bet on her reaching the playoffs. To believe in victory over Cloud9 is even more so.

Expert Betting Tips

Even with all the problems, Cloud9 is the clear favorite. The Russian team had time to draw conclusions from the previous tournament and prevent a repeat of the sad story. There is a high probability that Evil Geniuses cannot create intrigue.