Team Liquid vs Vitality VCT EMEA 2023: Vitality comes out on top of three map thriller with Liquid.

The stage is set for another banger in Berlin in the form of Team Liquid vs Vitality in the VCT EMEA 2023 season. And you can follow all of the updates regarding this matchup right here.

Team Liquid will be hoping for a much better start to their season after an utterly disappointing showing at the LOCK//IN tournament where they were dumped out of the single-elimination tournament by Team Secret 2 - 0. This Liquid side has been touted as one of the strongest teams coming into this new iteration of the VCT after they made a considerable number of changes to their team in the offseason. The most notable is the acquisition of nAts and Redgar from M3 Champions. While the raw slaying power of their players has never been a problem, the question coming into this match will be whether or not Liquid can overcome the demons of their past.

On the other hand, Vitality performed fairly well at LOCK//IN. Beating Global Esports 2 - 1 before losing to Leviatán 2 - 0. They also made a fair few acquisitions in the offseason following their induction into the first season of franchising. While they aren't seen as strong contenders to secure a spot at Masters, that does not mean they are a team to be taken lightly. Making them a possible dark horse within the EMEA league.

The match begins with a trip to Haven, with the teams running a near mirror-match in terms of composition. With nAts opting to use Cypher instead of Killjoy being the main outlier. Vitality opens proceedings with a solid pistol round win. Enabling them to establish control over the map with a 5 - 0 lead. Liquid throws just about everything they have at Vitality, but are unable to deal with their very aggressive play calling. They finally manage to get a round on the board, but it is still a very costly round for Liquid. But it only serves to halt the win streak is Vitality gets their 9th round on the board. Vitality goes into halftime with a commanding 9 - 3 lead.

Team Liquid take the second pistol round as well as the next two rounds as they attempt to establish some presence on their attack half. Vitality trade out the rounds to extend their lead to 11 - 5, prompting a timeout from Liquid. The golden hornets hit match point and though Liquid manage to get one more round on the board, they weren't able to cheat death for long. And as a result of a big 3k from MOLSI, Vitality managed to close out Haven 13 - 6 to take a 1 - 0 lead in the series.

After a less than ideal start for Team Liquid they find themselves in need of a serious bounce back on their map pick Fracture. And it appears they have decided to throw the kitchen sink at this map as they opt to use an unusual team composition. With Jamppi using Skye, Soulcas on Viper, and nAts on Cypher.

Team Liquid wins the opening pistol round and the second round as they embark on the comeback trail. Vitality look like they are going to get their first round on the board soon after, but a huge defuse play from Redgar and nAts enables Liquid to extend their lead to 3 - 0. Vitality attempts to slow down the tempo on their offense but Liquid continues to pile on the pressure with their fragging ability. Team Liquid goes into halftime with an enormous 10 - 2 lead, with Sayf having a particularly monstrous performance as he puts up 20 kills and just 2 deaths.

A huge 1 v 3 clutch from Jamppi gives Team Liquid the second pistol round to make Vitality's task much more daunting. They hit match point soon afterwards and, sure enough, Team Liquid took Fracture 13 - 2 to tie up the series at 1 - 1 in an even more one sided fashion than Vitality managed on Haven. With Sayf capping off his insane performance with an 392 ACS (Average Combat Score) comprised of 23 Kills and 4 deaths.

After Team Liquid's near-flawless bounce back on Fracture the momentum in this series had well and truly swung in their favor. We now head to Lotus to decide this tie and Liquid look to keep Sayf hot on Vitality's trail as he opts to bust out his Neon.

Vitality takes the opening pistol round to regain some momentum from earlier in the match. The teams trade blows on the next two rounds with Vitality still retaining the early advantage. Vitality continues to build on their lead. But Liquid are forcing them to commit a lot of utility in the process. Which, combined with a strong performance from Jamppi, allows for Liquid to eviscerate Vitality's lead. It took a bit of time to get there but Team Liquid manages to take a 7 - 5 lead into halftime.

Vitality win the first two rounds of the second half as they attempt to claw back some control on Lotus. Liquid answers back with a Flawless round to regain the lead at 8 - 7. But two clutch plays from Twisten gives Vitality the lead right back. It looked as though they might be able to pull away from Liquid once and for all as they hit double digits. But a huge 1 v 2 clutch from Jamppi keeps Liquid within touching distance. Twisten strikes back with a 3K with a judge, forcing Liquid to take a timeout. It was a back and forth affair from start to finish on this map, and made for a fitting set for this match to end. And when all was said and done, it was Vitality who came out on top to take Lotus 13 - 10 and win the series 2 - 1.

It is a new era for the VALORANT Champions Tour as we get set for the first season of Franchising. The VCT season will see 30 teams split into three region-based leagues of 10 teams, competing for the chance to secure a spot at both Masters Tokyo in June and Champions 2023 in August. Fans who wish to watch the Fnatic vs Giants match in the 2023 EMEA League may do so by heading to the VCT EMEA Twitch and Youtube Channels.

You can catch all the EMEA action and live results on our VALORANT EMEA hub.

Stay tuned to esports.gg for more esports news and VALORANT coverage throughout the VCT 2023 Season.