GotFrag.com - Following EG.usa's loss to Mousesports Monday night, the team tried to figure out just what went wrong. Many theories were suggested - the team's last-minute strategy changes, failure to make adjustments in-game, and fatigue from a long, Counter-Strike filled day were the main culprits.

I think it's safe to say that all these factors contributed to the rather brutal loss; however, I would like to propose one additional weakness in EG's performance today.

So what went wrong?

When I was watching the storied and traditionally great teams such as SK and fnatic, there was one quality that set them apart from all the others. Was it their aim? No - at this level, all the players have outstanding aim and reflexes. Was it their strategies? Nope - strategies are indeed important to winning, but when the same maps are played over and over for as long as they have been, strategies become more and more predictable. Was it their recent roster shakeup? I don't think so - Lurppis seemed to be meshing well with his new teammates.

So what was it? What is it that sets the greats like SK and fnatic apart from the aspiring greats like EG?

It was the absence of noise from EG.

An incredible amount of this game is mental. Whether you hit your shot or miss it, clutch the round or fail trying, often times it is dependent on your state of mind. For most CS players, losing a round hurts confidence, especially losing a big gun round or an eco. But for the truly great teams, they shrug it off like an annoying bug on their shoulder. To them, a loss is nothing but an opportunity to do it right the next time, and you can see (and hear) this when watching them play on LAN. The amount of energy exuded by the great teams filled the arena today, but while watching EG play Mousesports, their shoulders seemed to sag a little more with each passing round.

Clearly EG was simply outmatched today, but if they are going to progress as a team on the international level, they have to be more vocal. They cannot be afraid to lose the big rounds, because it invariably happens to everyone; but more importantly, they have to believe that they are a team that can compete with anyone, a team that doesn't go quietly into the night.