Faze Upset Gambit in IEM Cologne Quarter-Finals

Gambit might be the best team in the world, but nothing compares to the pressure you face when you face an on-fire Faze Clan where Finn 'karrigan' Andersen is reading you like a book. Gambit faced that pressure in their IEM Cologne Quarter-Finals matchup and crumbled under it, as they didn't look like themselves in the decider map of Inferno.

Right off the bat, Karrigan threw in a curveball with Faze's pick of Ancient, the newest addition to the game. The intention was to make Gambit uncomfortable from the start but that looked like it had failed as Gambit came in hot from the start.

Starting on the CT side, they quickly picked up 11 out of the first 12 rounds as things started looking dire for Faze. Faze however manage to slip the final 3 rounds through Gambit's defense giving them a small chance at making a comeback.

In the second half, it was Faze Clan repeating Gambit's round-haul as they won 4 rounds in a row before Gambit could respond. Russel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken, Helvijs 'broky' Saukants, and Håvard 'rain' Nygaard all fragged out and didn't let Gambit into the second half. Karrigan too found many openings to exploit as he was able to flank Gambit throughout the half. The CIS giants were unable to find a path into the game and Faze quickly won the game 16-13.

The second map was another strong start for Gambit as they didn't allow Faze to get consecutive rounds, quickly getting to a 7-2 lead. The CIS team didn't have confidence in their game as they called 2 timeouts in a row after they lost a few rounds back to back. Karrigan took advantage of that indecisiveness and closed the gap down to a 7-8 half. In the second half, Gambit started with a pistol round conversion before Faze answered with the gun rounds. Gambit however wanted to end this quickly as they picked up 5 rounds in a row to secure map point.

Faze was on the back foot but they took advantage of Gambit's tendency to over-rotate at the application of the slightest pressure. This meant that the international squad could pull the defense around the map and get a weak defense when they eventually attacked which pushed the map into overtime.

Overtime saw an insane ace from Broky but the CIS squad eventually closed the map out 22-20 as the teams moved to Inferno to battle for their tournament life.

On Inferno, Gambit as usual got the advantage early but this time Karrigan's Troops were able to secure a lead at the end of the first half with a 9-6 scoreline as the Danish IGL had a 3 kill play in a 3v3 with a crazy lineup to start the streak. Gambit picked up the pistol round in the second half, but Faze wasn't interested in giving the CIS squad a way into the map as they shut them down, quickly reaching match point. From there it was only a matter of time till Faze eliminated Gambit and that inevitability came quickly with the map ending 16-9 and securing victory in their IEM Cologne Quarter-Finals match.

This sets up one of the most exciting games of the event so far as the resurgent Faze takes on Aleksandr 's1mple' Kostyliev, who is on a record-breaking streak of form. The game should provide explosive performances from both sides but as long as NaVi play their own game, the CIS star trio will claim victory over the international veterans. S1mple's Ace tally will also be a point to take note of as if he secures another he will set a new record of Aces in one event. Watch the game live on ESL's Twitch Channel and check out our coverage of IEM Cologne 2021 here.