fnatic came from behind to beat mTw 2-1 and win the IEM5 European Championship Finals.

fnatic, who started off as CT, were the first team to win a round, when they stopped mTw's patient strategy of holding middle. In the first gun round, though, some accurate wallbanging by mTw caused serious damages to fnatic and allowed them to score for the first time. The Danish team then got control of the money system as every gun round lost by fnatic resulted in a full eco for them, a story which was repeated for five rounds, until the Swedes finally managed to get back into the game. Fnatic then saw the next five rounds go their way to set the score at 8-5, but mTw did not lower their heads and won what there was left, to be down by the smallest of margins at the break.

The second half began with a quick rush by fnatic from the ramps into the tower room, which was quickly stopped by mTw. After losing the second round, the Swedes decided to buy, but the move did not pay off as they were unable to break through the Danish defence and had to go on eco again. However, the Swedes won the next two rounds, the second of which thanks to an amazing individual action by Richard "Xizt" Landström. That was not enough to break mTw’s hearts, though, with the Danish side coming right back into the game and going all the way to win the first map 16-11.

mTw in the lead

de_train started with fnatic getting the knife round, which allowed them to pick the defensive side. It was not strange then that they won the first three rounds with ease. The fourth round looked like would go to Denmark, but Marcus "Delpan" Larsson sensationally won a 1-on-2 situation with just 2 hp and an AWP. mTw finally managed to score in the fifth round, but that was a rare sight in the first half, as fnatic shut down their bombsites really well, except in the last two rounds, which went to mTw as the scoreboard showed 11-4 for the Swedes.

Fnatic won the pistol round in the second half in incredible fashion, as Richard "Xizt" Landström won it with just 1 hp against an opponent who had full health. mTw reacted in the third round and gained control of the match but in the end of the 30 rounds neither side could prove their point as the game ended 15-15. In overtime, after the teams had won five rounds each in the first set, fnatic distanced themselves from mTw in the second OT set, winning the map 26-23.

On de_inferno, fnatic got the all-important pistol round on the offensive side with a middle push into bombsite A, which mTw could not deflect. The Danish side only got the chance to respond in the fourth round and they went on to level the game on three rounds. The rest of the first half was a close affair, as the rounds were distributed almost equally among the teams.

fnatic win it

Now on the defensive side, fnatic, who were down by 8-7, won once again the pistol round, this time with a very aggressive strategy which left mTw with very little room to operate. The Danes pulled one back in the fourth round, but that is as far as they went, as fnatic's defensive setup was too tight for mTw, which gave the Swedish team a comfortable 16-9 victory on the last map.

IEM5 European Championship FinalsBest of 0 mTwMatchpage 1 2 23rd January 2011 fnatic 1Best of 3 2

IEM5 European Championship Finals standings:

1. fnatic - $20,000
2. mTw - $9,500 + World Finals slot
3. Frag eXecutors - $5,500 + World Finals slot
4. Natus Vincere - $3,200 + World Finals slot
5-6. Lions - $2,150 + World Finals slot
5-6. Meet Your Makers - $2,150 + World Finals slot
7-8. TCM-Gaming - $1,500 + World Finals slot
7-8. SK Gaming - $1,500 + World Finals slot
9-10. forZe - $1,250
9-10. Electronic Sahara - $1,250
11-12. mousesports - $1,000
11-12. Alternate - $1,000