Our esports tipster Michael Lee is back with his esports betting predictions for ESL Pro League Season 18. Today, he looks at three Group C fixtures in FaZe Clan vs 9z Team, Imperial vs Fnatic, and 5yclone vs Natus Vincere, who will face off on Wednesday, September 13.
Check out our expert previews and betting tips below, and make sure to head over to Picklebet – Australia’s #1 esports betting site.
Esports Betting Tips: Wednesday, September 13th 2023
FaZe Clan vs 9z Team
ESL Pro League Season 18
FaZe Clan are expected to smash 9z Team in the first round of ESL Pro League Season 18 Group C. They’re priced as 1.083 favourites while 9z Team are 7.00 underdogs, which from a distance doesn’t look like it’s the wrong price. But I wouldn’t be so high on FaZe Clan.
FaZe Clan have a name, and they won a lot earlier this season, but FaZe also enter ESL Pro League Season 18 in concerning form. They’re on a three-game losing streak and have played just two games since the start of August.
Most of their wins happened against squads much stronger than 9z Team, which might be a good excuse to believe FaZe can justify their tag as 1.083 favourites, but I don’t believe this game will go as smoothly as these numbers suggest.
9z Team are in solid form, having won seven of their last ten games. Most of those wins came against weak teams such as Sharks, O PLANO, MASONIC, and Preasy, and 9z haven’t faced a good team since way back in Intel Extreme Masters Dallas 2023. Still, FaZe are in complete shambles, and they’ve publicly acknowledged that they’re not in the best spot.
It wouldn’t be the most shocking thing to see FaZe Clan set up 9z, but I prefer the outsiders to win a map at 2.62. FaZe’s poor form combined with the fact that they’ve not played a game in a month, are two big reasons why backing the underdogs is my favourite play.
9z Team +1.5 Maps
$2.62 (1 Unit)
Imperial vs Fnatic
ESL Pro League Season 18
Imperial and Fnatic have not met with their current rosters before, but according to the bookmakers’ offer, Fnatic should win without any real issues. That sounds like a bit of an over-exaggeration.
Fnatic have a capable roster, and they should be good enough to rank among the top 10 teams in the world, but they’ve yet to show anything too exciting. At Intel Extreme Masters Cologne, Fnatic barely defeated Complexity and produced a fluke win against Cloud9.
Since then, Fnatic have lost against ENCE, GamerLegion, Cloud9, Sprout, and ALTERNATE aTTaX. Imperial haven’t beaten any great teams recently either, but even more concerning is that Imperial haven’t played a game since July 28.
Fnatic field a better lineup and can achieve a lot more than Imperial, so I have no problem with Fnatic priced as the favourites. But I’ve seen enough concerning performances from them to believe that Imperial can win a map, even though they are rusty.
Over 2.5 Maps – 1.82 at bet365 1 unit
$1.82 (1 Unit)
5yclone vs Natus Vincere
ESL Pro League Season 18
As one of two Asian CS:GO teams at ESL Pro League Season 18, 5yclone aren’t expected to make it far, and it wouldn’t be the most shocking thing to see them exit the tournament without winning a single game. That likely won’t be the case, as a couple of teams in Group C can lose to them, but I wouldn’t be overly excited about 5yclone and what they can accomplish in Malta.
Natus Vincere are another team I wouldn’t be too worried about making it to the finals, and their past results speak for themselves. Since the significant roster overhaul, NaVi have not won anything, nor have they produced many good games.
They did fairly well against top opposition but looked terrible when faced with top teams. This proves that Natus Vincere aren’t ready to contest top spots in big tournaments yet. However, it doesn’t make them anything less than an S-Tier team.
Despite their poor form, Natus Vincere should not struggle to defeat 5yclone.
Natus Vincere -6.5 rounds (Map 1)
$1.90 (1 Unit)
