Ahead of each round of Premier League games The Hype Train analyses the best left-field player options for your Fantasy Premier League teams. Historically, weekly FPL Dream Team’s comprise of mostly differential players whose selection falls with a low selection percentage of overall players, to which there is no doubt that their influence cannot be ignored. With such an abundance of points coming from the FPL’s hidden gems The Hype Train selects one player from each Premier League match in the upcoming Gameweek to decide who could be the differential that sets your team apart. All aboard.

Fantasy Premier League: Gameweek 22 Deadline

For the 2019/20 Premier League season, the FPL deadline will be one hour before the commencement of the week's first game. Our website provides a real-world countdown timer for the the upcoming Gameweek, whilst you can read our latest Fantasy articles from the season on our 2019/20 FPL weekly hype sub-section.

Weekly Differentials (GW22)

The rotation period has ended, the transfer window has opened, there has been an FA Cup weekend, and League Cup semi-final first legs since the last Premier League game, and there is even another international break coming up. It’s all going on, and that means there is some normality returning to the Premier League.

This week there is only one fixture in the air which is Liverpool’s visit to Spurs, and this gives FPL managers to freshen up their teams for a return to normality. As usual, we are here to provide some out the box thinking which could give you the edge in the upcoming Gameweek.

GW22: Differential Highlights

Ismaïla Sarr (WAT): Watford’s record signing has been in great form since Nigel Pearson has taken over, and guess what, a good manager is getting the best out of a good player. It is almost as if Watford couldn’t get that. Sarr is an affordable FPL option, and in his last four games has two goals and two assists, culminating in three fantasy returns. Watford are on the rise and that is because of Sarr’s impact in the team.

Nicolas Pépé (ARS): Mikel Arteta has had a great impact on a woeful team in a short space of time, and capitalising on this new manager purple patch we are banking on Pépé to go from strength-to-strength. The Ivorian scored in the win over United in the league and was a handful against Leeds in the FA Cup, and he goes up against an injury ravaged Crystal Palace team.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin (EVE): Everton turned out to be Everton against Man City, so we are going to stick to basics and trust Ancelotti’s side against bottom half teams at home. The form is still there for Calvert-Lewin, and Everton have the fixtures in their path.

Gameweek 22: Differentials

SHU/WHU: Sébastien Haller (WHU, FWD, £7.0mil, 2.4% ownership)

CRY/ARS: Nicolas Pépé (CRY, MID, £9.1mil, 2.4% ownership)

CHE/BUR: César Azpilicueta (CHE, DEF, £5.8mil, 5.0% ownership)

EVE/BHA: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (EVE, FWD, £5.9mil, 5.5% ownership)

LEI/SOU: Jonny Evans (LEI, DEF, £5.3mil, 7.0% ownership)

MUN/NOR: Andreas Pereira (MUN, MID, £4.9mil, 0.5% ownership)

WOL/NEW: Matt Doherty (WOL, DEF, £6.1mil, 4.9% ownership)

TOT/LIV: Joe Gomez (LIV, DEF, £5.2mil, 2.5% ownership)

BOU/WAT: Ismaïla Sarr (WAT, MID, £6.2mil, 0.9% ownership)

AVL/MCI: Riyad Mahrez (MCI, MID, £8.4mil, 4.9% ownership)

Key Differential: Riyad Mahrez (MCI)

After last week’s disappointment with Dominic Calvert-Lewin, we learned that Everton are still Everton. And this week is very much the case of if you can’t beat them, join them. We turn to Manchester City for the differential captain this week, and the Algerian we have selected is a PFA Player of the Year award winning player. Riyad Mahrez is by no length of the imagination a differential player based on his talent, achievement, skill and acumen. Mahrez was a legend in the 2015/16 season when he inspired Leicester to a title win and is in the top ten players of the league. Everything is there…except a regular place in the City team, but we think that may change between now and the end of the season.

Manchester City are the worst team in the traditional ‘top six’ to rotate their team, and without notice five to seven of their regular players find themselves on the bench. Riyad Mahrez shouldn’t be a bench player, he is good enough to start every single match and can do what Leroy Sane use to do…force defences back five yards and take on defenders to create chances. Mahrez also has set piece potential on his side, and it is a real shame a breakout player of last decade is struggling to lock down that place.

Since GW18 Mahrez has been a real staple of the City team, and the eye-test has been extremely promising in that Pep Guardiola has found it hard to rotate the Algerian due to his ability to open space. He even started in the League Cup semi-final win over Manchester United. We also believe he is going to keep his place in the City team going forward, and the best bit is we shouldn’t have to convince you on Mahrez as a player and goal threat. All we can do is show you the patterns and statistics surrounding this match.

Riyad Mahrez: Premier League starting appearances 2019/20

GW1: 14pts vs. WHU (A)

GW4: 3pts vs. BHA (H)

GW6: 15pts vs. WAT (H

GW7: 10pts vs. EVE (A)

GW8: 1pt vs. WOL (A)

GW13: 10pts vs. CHE (H)

GW14: 2pts vs. NEW (A)

GW18: 9pts vs. LEI (H)

GW20: 6pts vs. SHU (H)

GW22: 5pts vs. EVE (H)

Statistics: Aston Villa vs. Manchester City

Manchester City have won the last six consecutive Premier League games against Villa on an aggregate of 20-2, with Villa scoring in only one of these fixtures.

City have kept three consecutive Premier League clean sheets against Aston Villa.

GW22 is the reverse fixture ofGW10 when City beat Villa 3-0 at the Etihad Stadium. Sterling, Silva, and Gundogan were the scorers in this win.

Man City are on a run of scoring in 13 games in a row, last time the Citizens couldn’t find the back of the net was GW8 when Wolves beat City 2-0 at the Etihad, also the only time they hadn’t scored in a game this season.

5, 3, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 4, 3, 2 – Man City have scored in every away game this season, totalling 29 goals on the road.

Mahrez has yet to start three Premier League games in a row, and if he starts against Aston Villa it will be the first time the Algerian has managed to hold his place in the City team past two games.

Mahrez has 13 attacking returns this season (5 goals, 8 assists). Among the seven returns in his ten starts, five of them took place at home, and two of them away from home.

Mahrez has blanked only three of the times he has started a game, which happened against Brighton (GW3), Wolves (GW8), and Newcastle (GW14). This means the Algerian has a 70% return rate in the Premier League when he starts.

All-in-all, Mahrez is player of uncapped potential in this City team, and if he starts, the numbers are on the Algerian’s side. Mahrez has been effective most of the time, and that isn’t by accident in a billion-pound team. Aston Villa are without Wesley and Tom Heaton for the rest of the season, and there is a real fear that this injury dilemma could make or break their season. City are always in scoring form, and their record against Villa has been impeccable. The only factor is Pep Guardiola…and when City want to maintain their latest purple patch they can’t rotate out Riyad Mahrez who is great form.

Want to know more about The Hype Train?

The Hype Train is an entertainment website founded in 2015, specialising in Fantasy sports reporting, starting with Fantasy Premier League (FPL), before expanding to MLS Fantasy coverage in 2018.

We pride ourselves in providing beautiful graphics, statistics, in-depth analytical reporting and free weekly insight for hopeful players attempting to climb rankings tables. We are also occasional media reviewers, with a keen interest to review games, live sport, and professional wrestling.

In 2019, Hype Train Football Club was formed, becoming the first Fantasy Football website to take to the field. HTFC is a socially active team across social and web channels, providing regular match highlights, match reports, comprehensive player statistics and unique player profiles.

The Hype Train were nominated and shortlisted for the 'Best Football Blog' in 2016 by the Football Bloggers Association at their annual Football Blogging Awards (The FBA's), and were again shortlisted as a finalist in 2019 in the 'Best Fantasy Football Blog' category.

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All aboard.