"If We Lose to DCG? Maybe We Swim Home" — Yeon After Team Liquid's 0-3 to T1 at MSI
Photo Credit: Riot Games
Team Liquid couldn't keep up with T1's pace and lost 3-0 to start their MSI. They now find themselves in the lower bracket, where any loss sends them home. Sean "Yeon" Sung — playing his fifth international — sat down with RFT.GG right after to break down what went wrong, why he doesn't think it's hopeless, and what TLAW need to find against the LCK and LPL's speed.
Did you get time to discuss with the team backstage after the loss?
Not much, just a little bit — the rough idea, but nothing in detail.
What are your first thoughts on the series?
I do think we played a little bit slow. They're quite a fast team and they just have maybe one more turn because of how fast they play — that's mainly the gist of how it went.
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It felt like in game two you were a bit scared to win given the advantage you threw…
That's what I mean — we were one step too late.
We were definitely a little bit nervous and scared. At some point we were just like, oh, maybe if we do nothing, they'll throw.
I agree — we did a little bit of nothing. It definitely sucks.
Was pressure a big factor in that second game?
Maybe a little bit, yeah. If it was a no-pressure game, maybe we'd have won it.
It felt like teamfights were where you struggled the most. Quid told me yesterday that's your biggest room for improvement. Would you agree?
Yeah, I think so. There are a lot of small things we have to improve on, but definitely teamfights, some part of macro decisions, and the lead-up to the teamfights as well.
This is your fifth international. You've never beaten an LPL or LCK team so far. What are you missing to make it happen?
We've come close a lot. Like the second game today — it's so close, but we're just barely there.
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Losing that much — doesn't it feel a bit hopeless in the end?
It's not hopeless, because in the end our game plans and ideas aren't wrong. I just think our process is quite slow compared to what our ideas are.
What would give you confidence going into the next time you face T1?
We're most likely playing DCG or KC next. I think just beating those teams — if we win those games, we'll have a lot of confidence, because a lot of the games today should have been winnable at some points, especially game two and parts of game three.
When it comes to your potential next internationals, how do you plan to keep your chin up and go into the match with confidence against the LCK and LPL in the future, after missing five times?
Because it's our first time as a team, there's a lot of experience to gain.
We try to play fast, but in reality the LCK and LPL teams are a lot faster than us.
So we get a lot of experience from this, and hopefully we can actually keep up with them.
It's funny because watching a lot of T1's games in Road to MSI, it felt like they were playing very slow. Do you think they just get faster at internationals?
To be honest, I think the game itself right now is very fast, especially with how the meta is shaping. When you have champions like Camille and Bard, it's just a lot of fighting all over the map.
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You also lost 0-3 to LYON in the LCS final. Two series going 0-3 — aren't you scared it could shatter the team's confidence?
I do think we played quite poorly and way more nervous in that series than we did in the T1 series. Today, I think there were just some unfortunate things that happened, and we should be fine.
Don't you feel like there's a preparation issue?
I think our preparation was completely fine. It's very hard to say, especially when we're playing on a new patch with not that much time. But for the most part, I think our preparation is quite fine.
You'll probably face DCG next. Your thoughts?
I watched them a little bit, but I wasn't too sure how they played — I was more focused on T1, so not many opinions on DCG to be honest.
Aren't you scared the next match is do-or-die not just for MSI, but also for the team's confidence leading into Summer, because that would mean three BO5s losses in a row?
To be honest, I think we're going to get more confidence than we did in that LYON series.
Today, I think we just failed ourselves.
In the other series, we just didn't do anything. There was a bit of a difference between the two.
Photo Credit: Riot Games
And if now, you lose to DCG?
Then maybe we swim home.
If you get past DCG, you'd likely face KC. You've beaten them before at First Stand — your thoughts on that team?
Last year I already had high opinions of Caliste — I think he's very talented, mechanically good.Busio is a player I've played a lot against, and I think he's quite talented as well. Yike is also very good. I just don't know much about Canna and kyeahoo. They're a solid team.
Do you still believe you can make it out of play-in after this series?
