IEM Cologne 2024G2 march into LANXESS after battering paiN
An indomitable lower bracket run has given the 2023 champions a chance to defend their crown.
G2 are through to the playoffs of IEM Cologne after a resounding victory over paiN in the lower bracket final of Group A, giving the Brazilian team no chance in an entirely one-sided series (13-6 Nuke, 13-1 Mirage).
The defending Cologne champions arrived in Germany in a purple patch of form with their new additions, securing a runners-up finish at Esports World Cup and making a successful campaign through BLAST Fall Groups in a defiant show of firepower and ability to slot Mario "malbsMd" Samayoa into anchor roles.
That momentum came to a grinding halt in G2's group stage opener as they were torn apart by SAW in a 0-2 defeat, resulting in an early trip to a brutal lower bracket and an early match against Spirit, who also stumbled in their opening game.
Since then, however, G2 have looked almost unstoppable: Barring a comeback by Astralis on Mirage, the European combine steamrolled their opponents with entirely one-sided victories, tallying three 13-1, two 13-3, and one 13-6 map win in a terrifying run through the lower bracket.
G2's stats in the lower bracket:
 G2 |
K - D | Swing | ADR | KAST | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 104 - 55 | +3.62% | 98.6 | 89.7% | 1.60 | |
| 107 - 60 | +6.29% | 95.2 | 86.2% | 1.59 | |
| 100 - 52 | +5.45% | 84.4 | 86.2% | 1.52 | |
| 99 - 57 | +4.62% | 82.2 | 84.5% | 1.42 | |
| 61 - 74 | -1.69% | 62.8 | 73.3% | 0.98 |
Nikola "NiKo" Kovač and malbsMd have looked fearsome in that run, the latter seemingly not missing a beat despite his role changes, while Nemanja "huNter-" Kovač has turned around a dismal period of form and even recorded his highest-rated map in Counter-Strike 2 against Spirit.
NiKo praised malbsMd's aim in a post-match interview, saying he had "never seen a guy with such aim," and that stood true in this series as malbsMd ripped paiN apart.
Clip: G2 react to m0NESY's knife on kauez in final pistol round
His entries left the Brazilian team no room to maneuver at all, and huNter-, Ilya "m0NESY" Osipov, and NiKo stepped up around him to ensure this was a one-sided battering in which Rodrigo "biguzera" Bittencourt's side were completely outclassed.
G2 were having fun with it by the end, with Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski grabbing a knife kill on a defusing João "snow" Vinicius and m0NESY adding insult to injury in the final pistol round, knifing Kaue "kauez" Kaschuk despite malbsMd laughingly saying, "don't troll!"
| G2 |
K - D | Swing | ADR | KAST | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 - 18 | +6.99% | 97.5 | 84.8% | 1.63 | |
| 31 - 14 | +6.70% | 86.8 | 87.9% | 1.56 | |
| 28 - 17 | +4.46% | 88.5 | 84.8% | 1.46 | |
| 22 - 14 | +0.43% | 72.3 | 81.8% | 1.31 | |
| 20 - 20 | -0.25% | 64.0 | 72.7% | 1.06 |
  paiN |
K - D | Swing | ADR | KAST | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 - 28 | -1.68% | 60.2 | 63.6% | 0.81 | |
| 17 - 23 | -3.91% | 53.7 | 63.6% | 0.79 | |
| 16 - 27 | -2.48% | 70.8 | 51.5% | 0.72 | |
| 15 - 21 | -2.38% | 44.8 | 69.7% | 0.72 | |
| 15 - 31 | -7.87% | 62.4 | 48.5% | 0.48 |
Myroslav 'zont1x' Plakhotia
PePeThEfRoGgAy
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excien
V1R33X
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Dinarska_divizija
Nino_Niko
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skyojoj
Plebannos
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deder1
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