The first half of the 2019 League of Legends World Championship Group Stage has gone well for J Team. Surprisingly well, you may even say. The LMS champions head into the second half with a 2-1 score, a score that includes a surprise victory against LPL champions and one of the fan favorites: FunPlus Phoenix.

During the Group Stage Chu "FoFo" Chun-Lan, J Team's midlaner, sat down with Inven Global for an interview. He told us what he thinks of the LMS, shared his thoughts on his own potential, and shed light on J Team's mentality in the tournament.

I want to start the interview by looking at your region. The LMS is probably less often looked at compared to the LCK, LCS etc., but how competitive is the league?

I think the LMS is not as competitive as the other regions. That means that we need to put more work into it, in order to prove that we're not as bad as others think we are.

How could the region become more competitive?

I'm not sure how the LMS could improve. I just think everyone needs to work hard.

Have you ever looked at other regions with the desire to compete in their leagues?

I never really wanted to go play in other regions. But a lot of the time I do want to face players from other regions and learn from their technique and skills.

Could you name a few players that are high up that list?

Players like Rookie, Faker, Caps... They're extremely good and they basically have no flaws, in my opinion.

Do you think you have the potential to reach their level?

Not yet, but I'll try very hard. My goal is to communicate more with my teammates and try to get close to those players' level.

What about your other teammates, do you think they can perform on that level?

If I had to guess, then I'd say only given the best conditions. But usually... no.

Let's talk a bit about your preparation for Worlds. You mentioned that the LMS is less competitive than other regions, so what did the bootcamp look like?

In terms of bootcamps, it's pretty weird. We're kind of a die: sometimes we have a highroll and we can beat anyone. But other times we don't roll well, and we can lose to everyone.

What does practicing look like then? You can't practice rolling dice...

I think playing with other regions is important, experience other play styles. The way the other teams play the game is very different from the way we do it. I think J Team's style is actually very casual. We just try to enjoy the game and stay happy.

Does that mean that during games you don't stress out as a team?

I think it does, yes. If you're too nervous and you're shaking all over, it has a very negative impact on your play.

Against FunPlus Phoenix it looked like the game was over, a couple of times. At those moments, how do you get composed as a team?

No matter what, we always think about what the next step is. If someone makes a mistake, you always tell them that it's fine. Everyone makes mistakes, but when someone makes mistakes you're supposed to be there to support them, and play even better. That's what a team is all about.