by ESB’s free League of Legends betting tips for Thursday, December 28, focus on three Demacia Cup 2023 group stage bouts. Here are our selections for Rare Atom vs FunPlus Phoenix, FunPlus Phoenix vs Invictus Gaming, and Invictus Gaming vs Rare Atom.
RARE ATOM vs FUNPLUS PHOENIX LoL BETTING & MATCH DETAIL |
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|---|---|
| Best Odds: | RA $2.10 at GG Bet | FPX $1.66 at GG Bet |
| When: | December 28, 2023 | 13:00 CST |
| Watch Live: | Huya (https://www.huya.com/lpl) |
Rare Atom have made several roster changes ahead of the 2024 season, adding four new players to the lineup. Top laner Xu “Xiaoxu” Xing-Zu and ADC Zou “Assum” Wei who are the only carryovers from 2023 link up with jungler Yang “naiyou” Zi-Jian, mid laner Lee “VicLa” Dae-kwang, and support Liu “ShiauC” Chia-Hao, forming a fairly competitive roster.
However, while Rare Atom have made some improvements, Rare Atom won’t compete for the LPL title, and they’re not even expected to do well at the Demacia Cup 2023. Priced at $3.25 on the outright markets with the top Esport betting sites, behind Invictus Gaming and FunPlus Phoenix, RA weren’t considered serious candidates to win Group C.
FunPlus Phoenix haven’t made any significant roster changes. While the team have added four new players, most are young and unproven talent from the secondary league. The potential is there, but until FPX shows something, that’s all they have.
This looks like a 50-50 match, so we’ll gladly side with Rare Atom.
Rare Atom to win
FUNPLUS PHOENIX vs INVICTUS GAMING LoL BETTING & MATCH DETAIL |
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|---|---|
| Best Odds: | FPX $1.90 at GG Bet | IG $1.80 at GG Bet |
| When: | December 28, 2023 | 17:00 CST |
| Watch Live: | Huya (https://www.huya.com/lpl) |
By signing junglers Cai “milkyway” Zi-Jun and Wang “moyan” Xin, support Kim “Life” Jeong-min, and ADC Seo “deokdam” Dae-gil, FunPlus Phoenix look much different than how they did last season. But this roster still lacks some pieces to be competitive at the top level.
The biggest concern is the addition of a few unproven players, who regardless of their potential, will need time to adjust to the new environment. Still, we can have the same concern about most other Chinese LoL teams, including Invictus Gaming.
Ahead of Demacia Cup 2023, Invictus Gaming have added top laner Liao “Wen” Wen-Wei, jungler Guo “Tianzhen” Qi-Fan, mid laner Yuan “Cryin” Cheng-Wei, and ADC Luo “xiaoyueji” Shi-Hao. Besides Cryin, the three new additions are all products of IG’s academy division, and they all proved their worth in the development leagues.
Both teams field a mix of experienced and unproven players, adding more volatility to the already unpredictable best-of-one format. And since there’s not much to separate them quality-wise, Invictus Gaming at $1.80 are an obvious choice with GG Bet.
Invictus Gaming to win
INVICTUS GAMING vs RARE ATOM LoL BETTING & MATCH DETAIL |
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|---|---|
| Best Odds: | IG $1.90 at GG Bet | RA $1.80 at GG Bet |
| When: | December 28, 2023 | 20:00 CST |
| Watch Live: | Huya (https://www.huya.com/lpl) |
League of Legends betting sites have Invictus Gaming and Rare Atom priced at about the same odds, suggesting this will be a close affair. Considering both teams have made several roster changes and added players from the development league, it’s fair to assume that the fixture is close to a coin flip.
But Rare Atom should have a much stabler top side, and if jungler Yang “naiyou” Zi-Jian does well, it’s tough to find a win condition for Invictus Gaming. The bot side looks slightly in favour of Invictus Gaming; however, even there, the difference isn’t significant.
Bookmakers have Rare Atom priced as $1.80 favourites, which is a fair offer.
