With the recent results in both the NA and EU LCS, the favorites have been thoroughly shaken up. While in North America LMQ and Counter Logic Gaming have set themselves apart from the others at the top, the European LCS the teams are being put under some pressure as Fnatic and ROCCAT both hit good streaks. This week’s schedule has some quite interesting matchups: who will take the chance to conquer one of the top spots, and which players should you make sure are on your Fantasy team?

EU LCS: Can Alliance and SK recover from their latest losses?

It’s been a tough week for the former top duo of the European LCS, with SK Gaming and Alliance having lost some considerable ground to their challengers. While Alliance is still first, they’re only one win ahead of newly second-placed team Fnatic. SK, on the other hand, is tied with Supa Hot Crew, and only one win ahead of ROCCAT and Millenium.

The matchups this week look promising for both the top and bottom teams. While Fnatic is facing the bottom two, the others mainly have pretty even matches. It’s hard to give any clear predictions, but there could easily be some must-sees if any of the teams manage to pull off some wonders in the remaining two weeks.

NA LCS: LMQ and CLG face off for first place

After last week, those at the top of the NA LCS are no longer separated by a single win. Now LMQ and CLG are one win ahead of Team SoloMid and two ahead of Cloud 9 and Team Dignitas. With those shakeups in mind, this week might finally give us a clear NA number one.

The likelihood of one clear leader emerging becomes more palpable when checking the matchups for the top teams. LMQ and CLG are to face off this week, and as long as the winning team is able to win their other game as well, one will go on to lead the ranking. However, we shouldn’t forget about Cloud 9 and Dignitas. Both face will be facing bottom-three teams and could potentially be up and ready to tie things out with this week’s losers.

Thoughts on this week’s lineup

With a lot of matches between teams close to each other position-wise, the results could go either way. Keep that in mind as you assemble your team this week, and make sure to have a look at the alternatives.

• Top

  With Fnatic’s latest results, sOAZ ($1,315) has earned a lot of points. As this week looks pretty good for them, he might be the right choice for you to earn some safe points.

  Alternatives: ackerman ($1,070) or ZionSpartan ($905) both look good this week as well, although their teams have very different matches ahead. While LMQ has a potential tied week coming their way (complete with hard teamfights), Dignitas could be another safe bet. However, the choice is yours.

• Jungle

  NoName ($1,130) and Cyanide ($1,235) are both on par in points scored over the last weeks. With Fnatic having the easier week on paper, it’s up to you whether you want to take a risk or go with the ‘safer’ bet.

  Alternatives: With CLG rising over the last weeks, dexter ($995) has made himself a legit pickup. His price is particularly tempting, but CLG’s matchup against LMQ could make him a go or no-go depending on your point of view.

• Mid

  XiaoWeiXiao ($1,215) is one of the reasons why LMQ came back from being a bit behind in the top NA LCS field, and is consistently scoring good points for a reasonable price. In the team’s matches against TSM and CLG, it’s arguably all up to him to score.

  Alternatives: xPeke ($1,200) is the one player coming close to XiaoWeiXiao stats-wise. With slightly easier matchups coming his way, xPeke could score some good points for $15 less than his NA counterpart.

• ADC

  CLG winning two important matches last week was the best thing that could happen for Doublelift ($1,495). Scoring an average of 41 points makes him hard not to consider for your team this week.

  Alternatives: As Fnatic is fighting their way back to the top, Rekkles ($1,685) is also among the best ADCs right now. While being $200 more expensive than Doublelift, Fnatic’s matchups could be a good reason to pay a little extra.

• Support

  When looking for a support player, YellOwStaR ($1,585) is the one you see first. He’s been playing an outstanding split so far and is also profiting from Fnatic’s surge in strength. If you have the money to buy him, he’s the best you can get for this week.

  Alternatives: The only one close to YellOwStaRs performance is Mor ($1,135). Even though he’s not scoring as well as his EU counterpart, he’s constantly among the best and not that far off overall. His price is also something to keep in mind. If you think LMQ are in for a good week, he might be a good budget choice.

What will your ESL Fantasy team look like this week? Do you have any tips on who to pick up? Share your thoughts in the comments below!