On August 10, EA Sports will release their annual football game - as Madden 19 hits the shelves. 

This year, they've made a number of great improvements to gameplay and franchise mode - as well as improving the most popular mode.

In Madden 19, Ultimate Team returns - and it's better than ever. 

This year, you can compete with up to two friends to take on the AI in a series of challenges with big-time rewards.

There's also now a greater choice of player customisation with an all-new player upgrades system. 

Contracts have been scrapped and replaced by training - which allows certain "Power Up" players to improve in both chemistry and overall - allowing you better control over your Ultimate Team.

And for the first time ever, "solo battles" are part of Madden, offering players the chance to match up against different "featured" teams each week, rather than just playing against one of 32 NFL teams.

If you're new to the game - then these features probably sound pretty cool. But Ultimate Team can be daunting for rookies - or even for those players returning to it after all those changes.

Luckily, GiveMeSport have been given early access to the game and we've come up with a number of tips to help our readers get ahead in Madden 19 from day one.  

GRIND THE SOLOS

As mentioned, improvements have been made to the solo side of MUT this year, with new battles to complement the returning challenges.

So players need to be taking advantage of this - and need to put the time in beating everything they can in single player, early.

From day one, there will be five different categories of solo challenges to play - "Campaign", "Legends", "Weekly Training Camp", "MUT Levels" and "Chronicles of Longshot".

Combined, there are over 100 different challenges to complete - with a bulk coming as part of the campaign category. 

Beating these challenges will reward you with coins, packs and items to improve your team on the field, as well as off of it. 

Of course, as your level improves and weeks roll on, more solos will be added.

It would be best to start with the legend challenges - as these 10 games offer a different legend player for beating each one, bolstering your line up. 

Of course, they are tough, but they are beatable, even with a starter team.

Don't be afraid to attack the battles early either. These will offer you much bigger rewards - but they'll be even harder to beat. 

SELECT A STAR "POWER UP" PLAYER

When starting out in MUT, a majority of your players will be bronze - but you'll get a few silver players too. 

As "Power Up" cards are new, you'll be gifted one to choose when you create your Ultimate Team - so pick a player that you want to build your team around. 

For example, you could select running back Devonta Freeman from the Falcons - and prioritise the running game early on.

Of course, the idea of gifting you this card is to test out the new training features - so do exactly that, and boost your "Power Up" player's overall as early as possible.

Then take him to the field and watch him lead your team to success early on. 

COMPLIMENT YOUR STAR PLAYER WITH OTHER GOOD CARDS

Once you build a decent amount of coins up, take to the auction house and purchase another good player to add to your team.

That way, you'll have at least two stars to focus your team on - and if you keep grinding and adding players to your team, you'll build a squad with a decent overall very quickly. 

Once your team's good enough, you can take on solo challenges that once looked too tough to beat - and you can try an online game as well.  

COMPLETE YOUR DAILY LISTS 

This one is very simple. The game will reward you for completing objective lists. 

Some will take a long, long time to finish - and are meant to be completed over the course of this year.

But the daily list is just that - one to complete every day. All you need to do is win two games, buy a cheap pack from the store and complete a set. 

Doing so will reward you with quick sell packs, containing coins worth up to 50k. Easy.  

RETURNING REWARDS

This tip is a bit of a cheat because if you're new to the game, it doesn't apply to you. 

But if you played Ultimate Team in Madden 18, then you'll be given a number of rewards on your return this year.

You'll start with a number of packs containing different players and training items and you can also skip to MUT Level 10, unlocking more solo challenges and bonuses from the get-go. 

QUICKSELL UNNEEDED CARDS FOR TRAINING

In order to upgrade your better players to the very best they can be, you'll need to have a fair amount of training points in your back pocket.

You can acquire training in different ways - through buying packs and playing solo challenges for example.

But you can also discard unneeded players - and unlike previous years, when doing so, you won't get coins, you'll get training points instead. 

So if you boost your squad early one, find some players you no longer need and discard them - and then invest their training in your other upgradable stars.  

PUTTING THE TIME IN

Every year, Ultimate Team is one of Madden's most popular game modes. But being successful and building your dream squad won't happen overnight.

With our tips though, you'll certainly be able to get a head start from day one - and your perfect team won't be too far out of reach. 

EA SPORTS Madden NFL 19 is available on PS4 and Xbox One on August 10, and available now with Origin Access.