We kick off a brand new week with our regular Esports betting article with guru Michael Lee taking a look at Esports tournament action from the Elisa Invitational 2021 as well as one play from V4 Future Sports Festival: Budapest 2021. Check out his Esports betting preview and tips below!
ESports Betting Tips: Monday, September 27th
HAVU vs Apeks
Elisa Invitational 2021
HAVU and Apeks will meet on Monday, in the third round of Elisa Invitational 2021, for the first time since April, when Apeks crushed the Finnish esports team with 16-3 on Dust 2. HAVU have not made a single roster change since then, but that doesn’t mean that we’re in for another one-sided game.
In fact, the betting odds suggest that it will be Apeks who will suffer on Monday. HAVU are not a very good team, but they’re still good enough to compete in the second division tournaments such as Elisa Invitational.
So far, they’ve won against Team Finest (2-1) and lost to Copenhagen Flames (0-2), which isn’t very good, but perhaps they were more focused on Funspark ULTI 2021: Europe Season 3, where they have made it to the quarter-finals, only to lose against AGO (0-2).
Apeks are a weaker team on paper and much lower (#54) rated than HAVU (#34), but I don’t believe they’re that much worse. Although Apeks’ record isn’t excellent (1-5), they have some quality, which makes me hopeful that they’ll do fine on Monday.
I don’t have high expectations for either team; I don’t see how either can win the Elisa Invitational 2021, and I don’t expect to see a one-sided match. HAVU will probably win since they have better players and are in slightly better form, but I would be surprised if they manage a clean sweep.
SKADE vs Double Poney
Elisa Invitational 2021
SKADE have yet to lose a match at Elisa Invitational 2021, having beaten Apeks (2-0) and GORILLAZ (2-0). Likewise, Double Poney are without a loss after two rounds of play, with wins against 777 Esports (2-0) and Team Fiend (2-1).
Both teams seem to be in solid form, and I cannot say which of the two records is more impressive. However, based on the quality of the teams SKADE and Double Poney have won against, I can safely say that neither has shown more.
That makes this match tricky to predict, and the head-to-head record doesn’t help. SKADE are 8-3 up in maps against Double Poney and won their last meeting with the French esports team at the start of the month with 16-11 on Dust 2 and 16-9 on Overpass.
However, Double Poney won their previous meeting in July with 16-9 on Dust 2, 9-16 on Overpass, and 16-14 on Vertigo. As evident, there is no clear winner in this matchup, which leads me to believe that we could be in for a very close affair on Monday.
SKADE are priced as slight favourites ($1.78 at PickleBet), which is fair, given their success against Double Poney three weeks back. Still, that win does not mean that SKADE are much better.
Bulgarians have won most of their games this month, but they’ve also lost against HAVU (0-2) and Movistar Riders (1-2) and dropped a map against Anonymo Esports (2-1). On the other side, Double Poney have suffered only two losses since August 25, against SKADE and FunPlus Phoenix, and are on a seven-game win streak.
Double Poney have shown enough for me to believe that they can show up and make life tougher for SKADE. They might even win, but either way, I don’t see how either team can take over the match and win in two maps.
Wisla Krakow vs Team Fiend
V4 Future Sports Festival: Budapest 2021
The upper bracket semi-finals of the International Cup at V4 Future Sports Festival: Budapest 2021 will serve us with an exciting match featuring Wisla Krakow and Team Fiend, who will clash for the first time.
Team Fiend are expected to win, while PickleBet offers odds as long as $2.25 on the Polish squad. Seeing how Fiend are 3-3 in their last six, while Wisla Krakow have managed only two wins over the same stretch (2-4), the offered odds seem fair.
But we must also consider the quality of teams Fiend and Wisla Krakow had to face. Fiend’s wins came against eSuba (2-0, 2-0) and Dignitas (2-0). Meanwhile, Wisla Krakow won against Endpoint (2-1) and Budapest Five (2-1).
Fiend’s losses came against Team Unique (1-2), FATE Esports (1-2), and Double Poney (1-2), while Wisla Krakow lost against Anonymo (10-16, 10-16), Team LDLC (1-2), and SKADE (0-2).
I don’t see why Fiend are priced as the favourites. They were good in June when they won Spring Sweet Spring #2, but they’re not nearly as efficient now. Krakow are not a team that will blow you away with their performances, but they aren’t that much weaker than Fiend.
I expect a close match that should go to three maps. But if I had to pick a side, I’d take Wisla Krakow at $2.25 any day of the week.
Wisla Krakow to win
$2.25
