Today, Cloud9 lost their first match of the 2021 League of Legends World Championship group stage against Rogue after a fairly easy run through play-ins. Despite the unfavorable result, the team’s titan in the top lane, Ibrahim “Fudge” Allami, said he is confident about the rest of the team’s schedule.
Aside from a few minor hiccups, Cloud9 looked like one of the cleanest teams in the Play-in stage, and Fudge was shaping out to be one of the team’s most consistent and explosive performers. During the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational, Fudge was able to go toe-to-toe against the world’s best, even when his teammates were struggling, despite being in his rookie year.
Now, Cloud9 find themselves in a treacherous Group C, a group many have dubbed to be this year’s “group of death,” which is headlined by tournament favorites FunPlus Phoenix and DWG KIA. Both C9 and Rogue are certainly underdogs in the group, but in order to have a shot at breaking out, the League of Legends Championship Series third seed can’t allow big names and heavy expectations to shake them.
Thankfully, according to Fudge, Cloud9’s staff have put in a lot of work this year to ensure the players have everything they need to keep their mental health in check and focus on the game. Upcomer sat down with Fudge after the last match of the day to pick his brain about the ways in which C9 has helped its players transition from their second Iceland quarantine this year.
“I do think there’s merit to doing all this wholistic stuff,” said Fudge. “C9, I think they’re very smart about how players feel and how players operate, so they understand how much time we need off and what we need to do to reset.”
Cloud9 play their next match in the Group Stage against FPX on Tuesday at approximately 11 a.m. ET. They have their chance at a rematch against Rogue on Friday at approx. 8 a.m. ET.
