The FC Pro Open is back for 2024 with Match Week 5, which saw Emre Yilmaz and Umut the first two players confirmed for the Quarter Finals.

and Lukas finished third and fourth respectively to earn their place at next year’s edition, while Mark11 put in an improved display meaning his FC Pro Live Item received two upgrades.

Regardless of where the players finished, there were lessons for all of them and we run through those here.

Emre Yilmaz’s variety

The Team Gullit player was the FC Pro Open’s first confirmed group leader and was devastating at times, starting with a 5-1 win over Lukas that was aided by an opener just before half time.

Emre Yilmaz had his bright moments despite losing against Umut and continued to push forward following that setback, beating Mark11 5-3 before ending with a dominant 6-2 win over H1dalgo.

One of the most exciting signs for the Dutchman is the variety of ways he could open up opportunities, switching between blistering moves and carefully crafted goals that required plenty of composure.

He will now come up against the second-placed player in Group D during the Championship on February 3, and that differentiation could be especially important if that player ends up being Team Gullit teammate Levi De Weerd.

Keep your foot on the gas

Umut was simply unstoppable in his first games of the Match Week. After sitting out Round 6, the RBLZ Gaming player put in a convincing display on the way to beating H1dalgo 4-2, then even beat Emre Yilmaz by the same scoreline in Group A’s blockbuster match-up.

That offered another insight into just how much of a danger Umut can be for anybody who faces him in the FC Pro Open, but if the German is to take any lessons it’s that he needs to keep the highest standards at all times.

Umut only got one point from his last two games – which came against Group A’s bottom two players – going 4-2 down before rescuing a point against Lukas, then finishing with a loss against Mark11.

The German’s end to the group stage is unlikely to cause concern seeing as his most important work had already been done, and he will aim to go full steam ahead when he faces the winner of Group D on February 3.

It’s harsh at the top

H1dalgo looked to be the player who could put the leading pair under pressure coming into Match Week 5, but things didn’t work out as the Spaniard would have hoped.

There was a bright start when he overcame Mark11 in the opener, but every match after that resulted in a defeat for the Somah Esports player. Arguably the most disappointing loss of all will have come in the 5-2 defeat against Lukas, although the heaviest was a 6-2 at the hands of Emre Yilmaz.

Even so, H1dalgo can still take encouragement from the impressive displays in Match Week 1 and third-place finish in Group A, which earned him a place at the FC Pro Open for next year.

Lukas’ emotions

The F.C. Hansa Rostock player had a rollercoaster of emotions in Match Week 5 and wasn’t afraid to show it. He looked distraught after losing to Mark11 and had his head on the desk, and there were other moments where he was visibly frustrated.

Even so, the German was often able to keep his head when it mattered and took fourth in the group with seven points. Lukas convincingly beat H1dalgo, but that quality was arguably displayed the most against Umut.

Having gone 2-0 down, Lukas executed a ball roll around the goalkeeper and then scored three more goals to make it 4-2. Despite conceding twice more, drawing against one of the world’s best was a big result.

Mark 11’s attitude

Considering how disastrously things went for Mark11 in Match Week 1, many people were wondering how the FUTWIZ player would respond. He did so commendably, picking up six points.

There were early signs of improvement despite his opening defeat against H1dalgo. His following win against Lukas proved inconsequential in the race for fourth but will have been important for the Australian – especially as he recovered from surrendering a 2-0 lead to earn a 3-2 victory.

Mark11 looked like he was enjoying himself against Emre Yilmaz and Umut after being boosted by picking up his first points of the FC Pro Open. He even went on to get a massive 5-4 win against Umut to round off a testing tournament with a brilliant result that can offer encouragement going into the rest of his campaign.