“Gen.G wins, the less you expect, the closer it will be”... ‘Mata’ Jo Se-hyeong’s request
Interview with Gen.G eSports ‘MATA’ coach Se-Hyung Jo
Gen.G Esports, the first seed in the domestic League of Legends professional league LCK (League of Legends Champions Korea), has advanced to the finals of the 2024 MSI (Mid-Season Invitational) being held in Chengdu, China.
On the 16th, Gen.G was the first to reach the finals by defeating Bilibili Gaming (BLG), the 1st seed in the LPL in the Chinese League, with a set score of 3 to 1.
On this day, Gen.G showed outstanding performance against BLG and is being evaluated as a golden opportunity to shake off their sluggishness in international competitions. 파워볼게임
Gen.G has dominated the LCK for four consecutive seasons from the summer of 2022 to the spring of this year, but is showing disappointing results in international competitions.
At the League of Legends World Championship (Worlds Cup) held last year, he was eliminated in the quarterfinals and only ranked 4th at MSI.
In an interview with the Korea Economic Daily after winning against BLG, Gen.G coach ‘Mata’ Jo Se-hyung said, “I expected the match against BLG to be difficult, but the opponent’s resistance in the last 4 sets was especially strong,” and “I feel even better because I won with difficulty.”
When asked about his aspirations for the finals, Coach Cho gave a witty answer, saying, “It’s been a while since Gen.
He then added with a smile, “I think we could get closer to winning if we cheered a little less.”
Regarding BLG's ban pick for 'concentrating mid-range control', it was revealed that the match between T1 and BLG was a hint.
He said, “I saw that (BLG) used a lot of mid bans in BLG and T1 matches, so I thought they could try a similar strategy against us,” but added, “‘Chovy’ Jeong Ji-hoon does not have a narrow range of champions, so he cannot be mid 5 bans.
“I had confidence that I could block it,” he said, expressing his faith in the player.
Coach Se-hyeong Jo said about the 2nd set ban picks that were changed after losing the 1st set, “I think we focused on picks that our team members were confident in.
In fact, if we had lost, we could have been intimidated by choosing a non-mainstream champion, but I think we won easily because our teammates played well.”
He gave credit to the players.
As a countermeasure to the line swap strategy emerging from MSI, 'individual judgment' and communication were emphasized.
Coach Cho said, “In the case of line swap, it is a strategy that requires all five people to participate,” and added, “Rather than having a set correct answer, each individual’s judgment (moment by moment) is important.”
He then emphasized, “It is important to provide team members with more information than during a normal line battle, such as who has the initiative and what the turret dive situation is.”
Coach Jo Se-hyung, who made a name for himself as a 'legendary supporter' during his playing days, chose the bottom duo as the MVP for the match against BLG.
Coach Cho said, “I think the bottom duo did the best in today’s series.
It would be difficult to choose between the two (‘Phase’ Kim Soo-hwan and ‘Lehends’ Son Si-woo), but I think we won because Son Si-woo played well” I praised it.
Regarding Son Si-woo, he said, “Personally, I think he has his ups and downs, so I think he needs to raise his lows,” but emphasized his strengths, saying, “I think he has excellent communication skills and tenacity.”
In particular, he highly praised Son Si-woo's mentality, saying, "During a game, if you lose or are pushed by your opponent, you may feel discouraged, but even in such a situation, he has a strong mental power to overcome and show a good performance in the next game."
Coach Cho responded, “All five BLG players were good and sharp.
If I had to pick one, I was most impressed by the play of Vin, who chose Xanthe.”
Meanwhile, regarding T1, whom he had a relationship with after working as a player in 2019, Coach Se-hyung Jo said, “Actually, I want to avoid direct support (because we might meet as enemies),” but expressed respect by saying, “But I think T1 will make it to the finals” appeared to do so.
He continued, “I think we have to make up for our mistakes no matter who our opponent is in the finals,” and showed his firm will by saying, “I will prepare well to show a good performance against all teams.”
