The winner's bracket final of the LPL second split playoffs is over. Top Esports faced WE and won three consecutive games to advance to the finals, earning the LPL's first MSI berth. WE, which had earlier beaten BLG and AL, showed no resistance against Top Esports, which was quite unexpected. Obviously, Top Esports had done extensive preparation on WE during their time off, dictating every move throughout the match.

After falling to the loser's bracket, WE's next opponent will be the winner of BLG vs AL. Given their current form, it seems WE might become the "ticket seller" (a term for teams helping others qualify). Although they had previously defeated both teams, their playstyle has now been exposed. They blindly group up as five, ignoring side lanes entirely. Top Esports provided a textbook counter-strategy, making it unlikely that BLG or AL will falter again.

JKL enters finals for the tenth time, becoming the all-time number one

After Top Esports advanced to the finals, bot laner JKL has made his tenth career finals appearance, tying Xiaohu's record for second place (first is Knight with eleven). Among AD carries, JKL is the first to reach the finals ten times, securing the top spot. In his previous nine finals, he has three championships and six runner-up finishes—still an impressive achievement despite the many silvers.

Top Esports' top laner and support are rookies this year. Fengyue was heavily criticized in the first split, with post-game ratings rarely exceeding three points. Unexpectedly, JKL's return led them all the way to the finals. Last year, he helped Hang earn a first-team selection and a Worlds spot; this year, he brought Fengyue to MSI. It's safe to say JKL's support-carrying ability is unmatched in the LPL—as long as they aren't hopelessly bad, they usually succeed.

Daeny's review after losing to WE: he called out everyone

BLG, now in the loser's bracket final, recently shared a documentary from the early playoff stages. After losing to WE, coach Daeny was genuinely furious. During the review, he directly questioned the players: "Aren't you ashamed? The coach is ashamed. As a world-class team, it's shameful to say we didn't know and got tricked. But knowing and still falling for it—that's the most shameful thing."

Daeny's scolding was intense, and the players listened seriously—except for Bin, who kept playing on his phone. It's hard to comment on that attitude. Maybe Bin already knew the team would make it to MSI? After all, reversing "15W" gives "MSI." The review session clearly helped; against JDG, BLG's discipline improved significantly. But this issue has become a recurring theme.

ShowMaker suffers a reverse sweep and misses MSI

The LCK MSI qualifiers have reached the third round. After sweeping BRO in the second round, DK faced KT. They won the first two games but then lost three in a row. The last two games were truly bizarre: in game four, DK had a 10k gold lead and an Infernal Soul but still got reversed. In the deciding game, they had a Water Soul and a 5k gold lead but still lost. These two games were incredibly frustrating.

When the score was 2-0, everyone thought ShowMaker would go on a 1v4 run to MSI. But then, with huge leads, they were reversed three times. Top laner Siwoo was truly abstract; all he had to do was play safe and they would win, but he kept making huge mistakes. He didn't learn any of Zeus or Doran's strengths; instead, he picked up all their weaknesses. In teamfights, he either arrived too late or made weird flanks only to die immediately.

Conclusion:

It's quite something to lose two consecutive games with Dragon Souls and economic advantages. This young top laner Siwoo really destroyed his own market value in this BO5. In a league like the LCK where new talents emerge constantly, playing like this makes it uncertain whether he can keep his job. It feels like DK might bring in a substitute top laner for the third split.

So, do you think BLG can make it to MSI?

Feel free to leave a comment and discuss!