The first round of the LPL Stage 1 playoffs has wrapped up. On the previous match day, four teams in the lower bracket competed. BLG dominated NIP with a 3-0 clean sweep, Left Hand putting up a combined 26-6-25 in three games and taking the match MVP. Their performance after the Spring Festival is noticeably better than before, but since the opponent was just a tough team, the significance of the win remains limited and more time is needed to assess.

Another match on the same day was IG versus WBG. Before the game, everyone expected a close battle, but IG was completely shut out. Although the score was 3-0, the gameplay was intense, almost like a duel between top-tier players. Regardless of which team had the early lead, the other would catch up economically by mid-game, only for IG to suddenly throw several fights late-game, ending the match abruptly. This pattern repeated in all three games.

IG’s early laning phase was actually quite decent (except for the top lane), but issues arose mid to late game. When they gained advantages, their ability to close out matches was very weak; otherwise, they could have won at least one game in the series. The jungle and mid lanes had some impact, but top laner Soboro consistently underperformed, struggling badly in all three matches. In the first game, he even picked a top lane Varus and fed multiple times early on.

He couldn’t even perform the simplest combos, and in team fights, he oddly relied on auto attacks to secure a quadra kill. Miller, commentating on the second lane, couldn’t hold back and joked, "If I were top, I’d have gotten a quadra kill too." Just when IG seemed poised to turn things around, Soboro recklessly walked into the enemy’s face and fed again — truly unbelievable. In the second game, his Renekton performance was like a desert chef: at 25 minutes, he TP’d behind enemy lines with a big shield, but when Nami approached, he immediately fled using his double E.

This “excuse me” play surely made fans of Yuyu laugh out loud. In the final game, playing as Yahan, he was down over 50 CS at 15 minutes, completely failed to use his ultimate control effectively, and ended with an absurd 0-5 scoreline. Across these three games, Soboro was never a help to the team. He was outlaned by Zika’s spinning top, managed to get a few kills in team fights but then fed repeatedly. If IG had a different top laner, they likely wouldn’t have been swept 3-0.

This year, LPL recruited many Korean players from the LCK. Most of them showed some level of contribution, but Soboro has been consistently poor. He showed a bit of promise during the Demacia Cup and early stage, but then completely fell off in this split. Letting him continue playing is less effective than bringing TheShy back. Although TheShy also has his downsides, at least fans enjoy watching him, and his return could revive some hype.

Among the 10 players on the field, Soboro was the only one rated below 1 point by the audience, receiving a rare 0.7 score. Honestly, it’s been a long time since such a low rating was seen, so there’s no need to say more about how terrible Soboro was. After BLG and WBG’s wins, they will meet in the winners' bracket first round. Judging by recent form, WBG is unlikely to beat BLG, as they struggled even against IG and won’t stand a chance against BLG.

After dropping to the losers' bracket, IG will face NIP. Unless something unexpected happens, IG is expected to be eliminated in the quarterfinals. These two teams have met once before in the knights’ path, where NIP won 3-1. Although NIP is a resilient team, they have real strength, and it’s unlikely IG, a pseudo-peak and somewhat reformed team, can defeat them. After this split, IG should consider changing their top laner or at least signing Huxi.

Conclusion:

Having watched LPL matches for many years, it’s rare to see a Korean import perform this poorly. If Soboro doesn’t improve soon, he will definitely be cut. It’s a pity that IG in the losers' bracket and Tobe Bro aren’t in the same half of the bracket; if these two teams clashed, it would have been a feast for fans, possibly worth several extra bowls of dinner. Such a shame.

So, do you think Soboro is the worst Korean import?

Feel free to leave comments and discuss!