The champion of the 2018 LCK Spring will be decided on the upcoming 14th of April. While waiting in anticipation for this big match, we had the opportunity to hear from the head coaches of the remaining 8 LCK teams that were unfortunately eliminated from the tournament. It was, however, a surprise, as all 8 teams predicted that KZ will win.

Most of the teams emphasized the importance of the jungle-mid matchup, predicting that KZ will be stronger than AFs in that regard. The others argued that KZ's toplaner Khan will be too big of a threat and that KZ's botlane duo will have more options over AFs composition-wise. We heard the various head coaches talk about KZ's strengths, and what AFs needs to do in order to have a shot at becoming the Spring champions.

KT and SKT Predicts a 3-1 Series in Favor of Kingzone DragonX

■ KT Rolster's head coach "Chang-Jong Oh"

The head coach of the 3rd placed team, KT Rolster, weighed in his prediction for the upcoming finals by stating, "I predict that KZ will win -- they have dominated the regular season. Not only have they had a lot of time to prepare for the Finals, but they were able to check and keep track of their opponent's tactics throughout their games in the playoffs. Also, KZ's players have great teamwork. It's highly likely that KZ will win with a score of 3-1."

"However, if AFs has prepared more surprise tactics like they did during the playoffs, the outcome may turn out different than my predictions. KZ is a very offensive team; the outcome of the series will depend on how AFs plays -- on whether they play offensively or defensively," he continued. 

 He finalized the interview by stating, "Both teams are already very strong. Although I predict KZ to win, in my opinion, the series will largely depend on which of the two toplaners performs better."

■ SK Telecom T1's head coach, "kkOma"

kkOma had similar views to that of Oh's. kkOma predicted KZ would win the series, stating, "Every single player on KZ is performing extraordinarily -- I feel that KZ will win with a score of 3-1. I predict that KZ will take the lead through the laning phase and play around the objectives. The team who takes the lead in the toplane and jungle will most likely win. I'm expecting entertaining and fiery fights on the topside of the map."

The Head Coaches of KSV and ROX Tigers, "Khan will be too troublesome for AFs."

■ KSV's head coach, "Edgar"

Head coach Edgar brought up "preparation time" and "outstanding individual performance" before predicting that KZ will come out on top during the Finals. "During their series against KT Rolster, AFs revealed a lot of their hidden cards. After having witnessed AFs' tactics, KZ most likely has prepared multiple ways to counter. It's highly unlikely that AFs has prepared another unique strategy, especially considering that they didn't have enough time. Score-wise, I predict that KZ will beat AFs with a score of 3-0," he said.

Following his prediction, coach Edgar shared his opinion on a new champion. "In the current meta, the jungle-midlane has become very important. I'm expecting the appearance of Xin Zhao. Not only does this champion fit well into KZ's playstyle, but it can be used as a surprise pick like KZ did with Olaf. Both midlaners are outstanding players, but I feel that Bdd is one step ahead. I think the series will be decided by how both teams' midlane-jungle perform."

Lastly, coach Edgar picked Khan to be the most important player, "KZ has another weapon... Khan -- I'm very curious how he'll play. Although the toplaner's impact on a game has been reduced dramatically in the current meta, Khan is just a very skilled player..."

■ ROX Tigers' head coach, "Hyun-Jong Kang"

In the case of head coach Kang, he highly regarded AFs' unique and very specific tactics and playstyles. However, he further stated that "although AFs reached into their untapped potential of creating and utilizing unique and sharp tactics, KZ is still stronger in terms of combat. The jungle-midlane fights will be very important, but the toplane and botlane matchup will also be very interesting to watch -- but with all that said, Khan and PraY-GorillA are still stronger than AFs' combo.  Frankly speaking, my prediction is that KZ will win 3-0. But it's still possible that AFs can draw-out the series depending on if they have prepared more unique tactics."

In addition, coach Kang shared some of his thoughts regarding the current meta. "The botlane matchup has become more exciting due to the addition of Kai'Sa. In the toplane, Khan's champion-pool could become a problem for AFs -- they will have a hard time finding room to ban Khan's most played champions. If AFs do fall back on the plan to target Khan during picks and bans, the other laners of KZ will have an easier time. Not only does AFs need to prepare for intense picks and bans, but they will also need to prepare tactics/plays for the game itself." 

The Head Coaches of JAG and BBQ, "KZ is superior to AFs in a lot of areas"

■ Jin Air Green Wings' head coach, "Sang-Yong Han"

JAG also made the same prediction -- that KZ will take the trophy. Head coach Han stated, "KZ definitely has weaknesses, but no matter how AFs tries to exploit them, I don't think AFs will win more than 1 set, if any at all. I predict that KZ will win with a score of 3-1. I'm curious how AFs will overcome KZ's strong early game."

Continuing his statement, Han picked Bdd and Peanut as the most important players. He also stated that "the only thing KZ needs to watch out for are 'mistakes'. It's easy for teams to slip when playing aggressively, but if KZ stays aware of this and plays carefully, winning will be a no problem for KZ." He continued, "Personally speaking, I find the jungle matchup to be very important. Even during the earlier stage of this split, I highly regarded Peanut  -- I considered him the best player. How Spirit and Mowgli handle Peanut will decide the outcome of the series. In addition to that, Bdd is the best midlaner currently. I'm excited to find out if Kuro can overcome Bdd and take that title for himself."

■ bbq Olivers' head coach, "Garam Kim"

Although he opened up by stating that "this is a hard matchup to predict," head coach Kim said, "I predict that KZ will win. In retrospect, what they've shown us so far during this Split was truly outstanding. Although AFs is also a great team, what KZ had shown us was even greater. Since last year, Bdd has been maintaining top performance -- Kuro will not be having an easy time."

To close out the short interview, coach Kim said, "The two players [Kuro and Bdd] prefer playing champions that can affect other lanes. In order for them to effectively roam, the junglers of each side will play an important role. Unless AFs brings out a joker card of some kind, I believe KZ has the advantage in the midlane-jungle matchup."

The Head Coaches of MVP and KDM, "Kingzone DragonX... 'the upper half of that team' [top, mid, jungle] is very, very powerful."

■ MVP's head coach, "Jae-Hwan Kwon"

Regarding the prediction of who'll come out on top at the LCK Spring Finals, head coach Kwon predicted, "It's highly likely for KZ to win the Finals with a score of either 3-1 or 3-0. The core player will be Peanut, a very consistent player. His playstyle is also very fun to watch, so it'll be an entertaining Finals for the fans. And in addition, both Khan and Bdd have also proved themselves to be the best of their role this LCK split, so it'll be hard for me to give out a different opinion/prediction."

■ Kongdoo Monsters' head coach, "Min-Chul Jang"

As the final coach to share his prediction, head coach Jang stated, "Having practiced against both KZ and AFs, I felt that KZ was the stronger team. The team has been maintaining the solid plays that they have shown for the duration of the regular season. If AFs can somehow shatter that solid shell, maybe it'll be possible for them to win; but it's still uncertain."

Jang further stated, "The outcome of the match will be decided upon the performance of the 'upper half of the team.' I think the matchup between the strong rookie, Bdd, and the consistent Kuro will definitely be interesting. I'm waiting in anticipation to see what kind of plays come from Kuro, a player that faced Faker at the Finals in the past."