Thus, after the fierce battle with JD Gaming, not only was the goal of avenging the loss in the LPL Spring 2022 group stage unachieved, but Weibo Gaming also had to officially say goodbye to the tournament. With a strong investment in the off-season transfer period at the end of 2021, bringing in two players, SwordArt and TheShy, along with coach Easyhoon, WBG’s results have not been very promising.
During this Spring season, WBG had moments that made people believe they could become the “T1 of LPL”, meaning they would have an impressive undefeated streak, crushing all opponents. WBG defeated the reigning World Champion EDward Gaming without much difficulty. Afterwards, they forced Doinb’s “To Châu Unicorn” and Rookie’s Victory Five to “lay down their arms”. Those were convincing victories, especially with the stunning performances of the new duo SofM – TheShy.
However, WBG’s journey was not without its “dark points”, but in fact, there were many. They suffered humiliating defeats against Royal Never Give Up and JD Gaming, then Rare Atom. Victories against LGD Gaming and Invictus Gaming were lacking in conviction. The only thing is, these were the final matches of the group stage, and before the match against JDG, TheShy explained that simply “WBG wanted to hide their strategies for the playoffs”.
But one undeniable truth is that in the matches of the latter half of the group stage for WBG, whether the team won or lost, SofM was the name most criticized. When WBG won but lost the Dragon or Baron, people said SofM had lost control of his jungle. And when WBG lost, there was nothing to say; SofM, not anyone else, was the first name mentioned. In fact, many fans even demanded WBG find a replacement for SofM or teased that the “Vietnamese Jungle God” was playing as if he were “earning money to buy a villa”.
Regarded by LPL fans as one of the “five gods” in the League of Legends scene, alongside Uzi, Faker, MadLife, and his teammate TheShy, it is clear that at this point, SofM is under more pressure than anyone among them, especially his teammate “Shy ca”. SofM is seen as a major contributor to changing the mindset and traditional jungle paths of LPL, but now, he is the one who must “bear the brunt” even though he and the entire WBG team understand each other’s playstyle better than ever.
SofM faces such heavy criticism, a quite understandable reason is that within the WBG roster, he is always seen as the playmaker. Remember, in the documentary about LPL teams, one of the reasons Bin had to leave was that he couldn’t mesh well with SofM’s playstyle. Early in the season, SofM himself affirmed that he was the main shot-caller in the early and mid-game. In other words, since SofM is inherently viewed as the backbone and playmaker for WBG’s gameplay, he must bear the main responsibility for the team’s results.
However, those who criticize SofM probably do not remember that League of Legends is a team game and that victory or defeat is not solely determined by one individual. In every League of Legends match, there are countless variables, and members must play according to those variables. Just like the “invincible” T1 has had to forfeit major objectives, even Dragon Soul, to achieve eventual victory in many matches.
In the fifth game against JDG, it was most evident how hard SofM tried in each game. Especially in game 5, when TheShy’s Aatrox was “completely out of power”, the bot lane had lost all hope, yet SofM still fought hard in his plays. SofM was willing to wait a long time, even while losing to Kanavi, just to gank Yagao. Or SofM still dove in and tried to push Hope and 369 back for his teammates. The only thing is, the god’s powers have run dry. SofM was lonely and “powerless” in a match where the opponent was superior, and his teammates even played below their capabilities.
Perhaps, SofM himself has become too accustomed to this throughout his long career. And as always, after a period of rest, “the chubby one” will return and strive to the best of his abilities as he once did. The only thing is, no one knows how long SofM can keep trying or how long glory will continue to elude the “Vietnamese Jungle God”.