The Community Round Up

With the World Cup fast approaching, international football dominated much of our community articles and hot topics, particularly with the introduction of a new World Cup game on the Scout, together a new team based community competition.

There was, however, still some Premier League chatter, with discussions turning to next season and the hopes for a far greater pool of players to help break the template. Elsewhere, we also saw a new entry to our glossary, as the “Fantasy Football limpet” was born.

The Community Submissions

Our community writers are continuing to impress, as previews of the World Cup continue to dominate the content being produced. Among the most eye-catching articles was Sarjeant’s handy list of all the teams’ top scorers and assisters during qualification. Be sure to bookmark this and have it on call when you come to select your World Cup squads.

Asquishypotato has also been busy warming up for Brazil with this comprehensive guide to Group A, which includes his analysis of the hosts. He’s also been eyeing up Brazil’s fierce local rivals Uruguay.

Another Group A side, Croatia, came under the microscope of Don Corleone The 1st One. Meanwhile, Etihad Engineer’s focus was on World Cup differentials as Fantasy managers scan for bargains to help shoe horn in expensive, better known targets into their squads.

When it comes to differentials, Iran’s players certainly fit the bill, as Innsie’s article was quick to point out. Selecting players from such unfancied teams will certainly help us plunder the Netherlands squad, with temptations like Robin Van Persie on offer. Pompeyfan’s analysis of the Dutch squad was on hand to look beyond the obvious targets and reveal an exciting out of position prospect that may fall under many a radar.

Domestic issues have also been analysed, with Bonz looking at the potential managerial merry-ground next season, as a host of clubs prepare to enter the campaign under the leadership of a new boss. Meanwhile, the upheaval of the Europa League was analysed in Triggerlips’ assessment of the potential impact of European football on some trusted Premier League sources.

Perhaps the promoted clubs could help fill the void? Jairzinho’s excellent analysis of the history of the promoted clubs gave us plenty to chew over. Elsewhere, Dino served up part two of his three-part feature on his own targets ahead of the new campaign.

Finally, John Terry’s Dog produced one of this week’s most entertaining articles with his rundown of ”Fantasy Football limpets”: poor performing players we all signed and just couldn’t shake. Lovely stuff.

We’ve got a whole array of articles penned by you and ready to go early next week, including further World Cup assessments of Nigeria, Greece and Italy.

If you have an article in mind, feel free to submit it via our Community Submissions form here.

The Hottest Topics

This week saw Fantasy iTeam arrive on these pages. Game representative Alan Davey was on hand to help explain the rules in this Q&A session and the subsequent discussion on the key strategies involved in Fantasy iTeam saw Rbcantona7, a veteran of the format, providing some crucial hints. His advice will prove invaluable for those getting on board and in the hat for the £500 prize for the Scout league winner.

As with our community articles, the Premier League’s changing cast of managers also dominated discussion, particulary after Louis van Gaal’s arrival at Old Trafford. Lionel’s Messy Boxers was among those to ponder how the United squad will perform under the Dutchman given his fondness of a 4-3-3 formation.

Full of beans after Arsenal’s first trophy in nine years, FACupArse pondered whether United’s defence was up to challenging the North London side and other Premier League heavyweights next season. Carrick Deserves More Mata was among many to point out that, with new recruits in the backline looking a certainty, United could be set to re-establish themselves in the title race next season.

Shifting focus to the other end of the spectrum, Burnley’s full-back Kieran Trippier earned some early attention as a potential target. Greenwindmill delved into his statistics and came up with a fascinating examination of how he may perform in the top flight.

For What the Heck, last season’s budget performers were of greater interest. He sparked a discussion about how well 2013/14’s breakout budget stars, such as Raheem Sterling, will fare next season.

The community also looked back at one of the Premier League’s long-standing top performers, Steven Gerrard. We asked whether he can he battle his advancing years and maintain heavy-hitter status. Giggs Boson certainly thinks so, although Aaron Ramessi has concerns that the Liverpool skipper may be priced too high after his achievements last season.

With Gerrard and other stars of 2013/14, such as Aaron Ramsey, set for a significant price hike, Saint Stevie-O wondered whether next season will see the best mix of heavy-hitters yet. Those looking for an end to the small pool of players that dominated 2013/14’s template team will certainly hope he is right.

The Community Tournaments

The FFS UEFA team have announced details of their World Cup community competition. Elninorules was on hand to explain that 32 team captains are needed for the competition by the deadline of May 29. Captains will be announced the next day when scouting begins for team members. Anyone interested can apply here.