DK vs LNG: all on the line! – Worlds 2024 Swiss Stage Preview

DK will go up against LNG in their Worlds Swiss stage qualification series: who’s snatching the ticket to the top 8 first? Let’s break it all down in our preview.

Image Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games

DK vs LNG – two completely different runs

Both DK and LNG came into Worlds with some skepticism considering how the two teams performed in the second part of the season.

While both were still strong teams coming into the tournament, most probably didn’t expect them to be among the four teams with a 2-0 record in Swiss. Yet, here we are.

LNG defied all expectations despite Scout’s late participation confirmation, taking down Team Liquid but most importantly, the domestic rivals and a title contender BLG. Despite thinking the fact that BLG messed up their drafting quite heavily in the match, beating the LPL #1 seed should be a great confidence boost as LNG might become the best Chinese team to fight for the World Championship.

DK, on the other hand, went against two relatively easy opponents on paper, FNC and FLY. Compared to LNG, their run has definitely been a bit easier. And despite the 2-0 win, the LCK team still showed plenty of mistakes and random moments during the matches. This inevitably still doesn’t allow me to trust them, even though they have been improving fully. Let’s see what we should expect from the series.

Match Breakdown

Compared to other top teams, LNG is one of the few teams that has been playing with a slightly different structure. Aside from the usual double carry combination between mid and bot, LNG gave top laner Zika two games on Rumble, which many thought fell off in priority due to the nerfs.

That said, LNG has utilized the pick as a great way to initiate fights and force plays around the map. The AoE damage and zoning potential are great when it comes to objective fights, and it gives LNG more ways to pull the trigger and engage.

DK, instead, has been focusing more on countering the enemy’s team compositions rather than playing their own playstyle. They mainly look to abuse flex picks like Yone and Smolder to throw the enemies off, and then get a draft advantage with counter picks.

That being said, I don’t think DK is clean enough to battle with LNG in its current state. The LPL team should come out victorious based on their performance and the number of mistakes DK notoriously makes in certain moments of a series. Even if the Korean team were to get a lead, you wouldn’t be sure they would have what it takes to close out the game. A close series would be a good outcome for them, but it’s also possible to see a 2-0 win for LNG.