TSM challenge Team Liquid on April 13! Each team has a lot to prove coming into this best-of-five LCS playoffs 2019 series, but only one of them is going to lift the trophy. Find out who’s it going to be in our in-depth finals predictions!

TSM went through hell and high water to get to this point. Their series against Cloud9 came down to the wire, and they had to divert from their trademark top-focused playstyle just to pull off that reverse sweep. However, the fact that they can switch up their style and perform like an LCS powerhouse under immense pressure leaves us hopeful for the rest of their LCS playoffs 2019 run.

Team Liquid had a much smoother ride into the finals. Their match against FlyQuest ended with an easy 3-0, and while they brought out the Sona/Taric bot lane and put a stronger emphasis on top lane carries, they didn’t show much beyond that. Still, TSM has always been a bad stylistic matchup for them. Combine that with the ongoing talks about Team Liquid struggling in scrims, and this series might be much closer than it seems at first glance.

TSM vs Team Liquid Match Breakdown

Top Lane Matchup

Our TSM vs Team Liquid match breakdown begins in the top lane. With a 3.2 KDA and 8.3 CS per minute, Broken Blade has been the biggest surprise of the season. Not only does he have the mechanics to challenge some of the best LCS top laners in the laning phase, but his unbounded confidence makes him one of the most explosive players in the league.

TL Impact is no pushover either. Holding a 4.3 KDA and 8.1 CS per minute, he’s the king of tank top laners, and you can count on him to find the right flanks and create space for his carries in teamfights. If that wasn’t enough, Impact recently expanded his champion pool to include several carry picks, and even though he doesn’t have Broken Blade’s killer instinct, we don’t expect him to fall apart in this matchup.

VERDICT : TSM Broken Blade finds a slight edge in the top lane

Jungle Matchup

The jungle matchup might very well be the deciding point of the series. With a 3.6 KDA and 5.3 CS per minute, TSM Akaadian is a talented jungler that can single-handedly take over the early game when he’s in shape. Unfortunately, he can just as easily gift the game to his opponents when he’s having a bad day, making him quite unreliable in the jungle.

Xmithie is his polar opposite. Sporting a 4.3 KDA and 5.5 CS per minute, Team Liquid’s jungler might not be the most dominant player in his role, but he’s definitely the most stable one. Moreover, he knows exactly what he needs to do to put his teammates in a position to carry, so we fully expect him to be a step ahead of Akaadian in the jungle.

VERDICT : TL Xmithie pulls through in the jungle matchup.

Mid Lane Matchup

Things will get wild in the TSM vs Team Liquid mid lane! With a 5.8 KDA and 9.1 CS per minute, TSM Bjergsen has been playing out of his mind this season. His lane presence is solid, and it’s common to see him secure a complete stranglehold over mid lane, but it’s his ability to transfer this pressure to the other parts of the map and use individual leads to break open teamfights that sets him apart from other mid laners.

On paper, Jensen should be able to match him. Holding a 14.2 KDA and 9.2 CS per minute, Team Liquid’s mid laner is a mechanical monster that routinely outclasses his opponents in lane and outside of it. However, Jensen has recently dialed back his aggression, so he won’t be able to overtake his current opponent in the laning phase. Combine that with the fact that Jensen historically struggled to keep up with Bjergsen in a Bo5 setting, and it’s hard to imagine him winning this matchup.

VERDICT : TSM Bjergsen reigns supreme in the mid lane.

Bot Lane Matchup

The bot lane will be a game of inches! Sporting a 6.6 KDA and 9.5 CS per minute, TSM Zven is a calm, cool, and collected marksman that made a habit of doing well in the laning phase and topping the damage charts in teamfights and skirmishes. Meanwhile, his support Smoothie (3.6 KDA) has a natural knack for flanking and playmakers, and you can count on him to start the right teamfights.

Team Liquid might have an even better bot lane at their disposal. With a 7.4 KDA and 10.3 CS per minute, Doublelift is downright oppressive in the AD carry position, and his razor-sharp mechanics and veteran game sense are the focal points of Team Liquid’s strategies. Yet, for the first time in a while, Doublelift is playing second fiddle to his lane partner. CoreJJ (6.1 KDA) is a force of nature in the support position, and his roams and initiations are a key part of this bot lane dynamic.

VERDICT : TL Doublelift and CoreJJ find a lead in the bot lane.

TSM vs Team Liquid Quarterfinals Prediction

This will be close! Team Liquid are the definition of a mid-game powerhouse, but TSM are much better at taking over the early game and making the necessary adjustments a Bo5 settings. And while Team Liquid can challenge their foes in the jungle and bot lane positions, Team SoloMid have all the tools they need to cover these weaknesses. Our prediction is a 3-2 victory for TSM!

You can bet on Team SoloMid winning the TSM vs Team Liquid series with a 3-2 score for odds of 4.97 at ArcaneBet.