Group C of the ESL Pro League Season 17 kicks off this week with four matches, as eight teams are introduced into the fray of the $850,000 tournament.
Only three teams can advance to the playoffs and with FaZe, Ninjas In Pyjamas, OG and Vitality all vying for those spots, alongside Rooster, paiN, 00Nation and Grayhound, one heavy hitter is sure to miss out.
| What: | FaZe Clan vs Rooster, ESL Pro League Season 17 |
| Where: | Malta |
| When: | 15:00, Wednesday 8th March |
| How to watch: | YouTube & Twitch |
| Odds: | FaZe Clan 1/1000, Rooster 25/1 |
You are never likely to see odds this short in any other Esports match this year and despite how ridiculous they may look, the odds are an accurate reflection of Rooster's task.
Rooster, an Australian-based squad, are ranked 108th in the world and have just three official matches to their name. The fact they were unable to beat Grayhound reflects very poorly on their chances against FaZe Clan, the fourth best side on the planet.
FaZe need little introduction and although they were below form at IEM Katowice, even that sort of form would see them comprehensively outmatch Rooster.
From a betting perspective, opportunities are limited, and perhaps you would be looking towards a map upset. Rooster are 8/1 to take a map off FaZe and those odds may appeal, given that FaZe have a history of being upset; though not in this sort of fashion.
| What: | paiN Gaming vs Ninjas in Pyjamas, ESL Pro League Season 17 |
| Where: | Malta |
| When: | 15:00, Wednesday 8th March |
| How to watch: | YouTube & Twitch |
| Odds: | paiN Gaming 3/1, Ninjas in Pyjamas 2/9 |
Stability has been extremely difficult to find for Ninjas in Pyjamas, who have lost the services of hampus for the foreseeable future and are currently playing with k0nfig as a stand-in. They have only recently added headtr1ck too, so the Ninjas are certainly in a transitional phase.
Back-to-back defeats at IEM Katowice did not show the true potential of this line-up and after a month of further practice behind the scenes, we should see an altogether much stronger Ninjas in Pyjamas here.
paiN Gaming have been in great form domestically, winning nine of their last 10 best-of-three matches, but their record against European opposition is altogether less pleasant, and they look outmatched as the odds suggest.
Ninjas in Pyjamas are 10/11 to win the match 2-0 and that looks the most likely result, with no real avenue into the match for paiN in the map pool.
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| What: | OG vs 00NATION, ESL Pro League Season 17 |
| Where: | Malta |
| When: | 18:30, Wednesday 8th March |
| How to watch: | YouTube & Twitch |
| Odds: | OG 1/7, 00NATION 4/1 |
OG have been one of the surprise performers of 2023 and can continue their upward curve when they face 00NATION.
The international roster qualified for the Paris Major Europe RMR at their most recent tournament and prior to that, performed better than the bare result when 9-12th at IEM Katowice.
They have been carried along by the performances of degster and flameZ, and that is likely to continue here.
00NATION performed a miracle to qualify for the Paris Major Europe South American RMR, coming back from 0-2 to qualify with a 4-2 record. No one can question their constitution, but this core has historically struggled against opposition away from their region.
With that in mind, is this likely to be another 2-0 on the day? The answer is probably yes. OG are 4/6 to come away unscathed from this match but the round handicap of -10.5 over the series is the most interesting market.
OG have struggled of late to put away opponents in dominant fashion, so +10.5 on the handicap for 00NATION could be the way to bet.
| What: | Grayhound v Team Vitality, ESL Pro League Season 17 |
| Where: | Malta |
| When: | 18:30, Wednesday 8th March |
| How to watch: | YouTube & Twitch |
| Odds: | Grayhound 15/2, Team Vitality 1/20 |
The pride of Australia, the core of INS, Liazz, Vexite, Sico and aliStair have been doing their country proud for years despite their mediocre record away from Oceania, there is upset potential in this match - if you are an optimist.
That is because Team Vitality are without one of their key players, dupreeh, who is taking paternity leave. He is being replaced by veteran French rifler JACKZ, but he has been below his best for HEET lately, as a 0.99 rating dictates.
Does that leave a way into the match for Grayhound? The teams met at IEM Rio last November and Vitality left with a dominant 2-0 success, which does not bode well for an Australian upset.
We simply cannot know how difficult it will be for Vitality to cope with the loss of dupreeh and 9/4 for Grayhound to take a map off ‘The Bees' is likely to be an interesting proposition for some.
If you are in the camp of Vitality flying through, they are 1/3 to win in two, or 5/6 to win by at least 14 rounds across the series.
