FANTASY PREMIER LEAGUE PREVIEW: Martinelli, Neto and the others players to pick in your GW1 squads

The new Fantasy Premier League season is rapidly approaching and millions of managers across the globe are chopping and changing their teams in pursuit of the perfect 15-man squad.

At the beginning of the season, plenty of managers aim to hunt down a new personal best, several tussle for bragging rights in their office mini-leagues, and some simply set themselves the dream of finishing with the coveted FPL crown.

Whether new to FPL or an experienced regular, it is important to take note of what's changed in the Premier League ahead of the new season and get a flavour of the in-form players who are just waiting to pick up a glut of points in the opening few gameweeks.

So, Sportsmail's Ben Willcocks, who finished with an overall rank of 118 in 2020-21, has assessed the status quo ahead of the brand new FPL campaign and built a shortlist of some promising options to back at the start of the season.

Season preview

The 'third wildcard'

The 2022-23 season is destined to play out very differently to previous campaigns, notably because of the World Cup in November.

Unlike before, the Premier League will break in GW16 and return six weeks later on Boxing Day.

As a result, managers will be able to make unlimited transfers between GW16 and GW17 and reset their squads with fresh new assets.

In essence, the FPL chiefs have handed managers an additional wildcard this season, which could dramatically change the manner in which players approach the game.

As the first wildcard must be played before the World Cup break, the need for a long-term squad is less important this campaign.

In order to benefit from the changes made on a wildcard, managers would be wise to activate the chip by GW12 at the very latest, giving at least four weeks of profit ahead of the GW16 hiatus.

Also, at the start of the season, there are always several unknown quantities just waiting to emerge from under the surface.

Expensive early season bandwagons can often require plenty of moves and points hits to get ahold of, but the prospect of a low-risk early wildcard could hand managers the perfect opportunity to restructure their squad as early as GW4.

In bygone years, millions of FPL managers stayed actively engaged with the game in the first quarter of the season - but this often changed in December during the congested winter schedule as deadlines came thick and fast.

With the World Cup providing a break from FPL, casual managers are now more likely to stay active for a longer spell this year, which should provide a more exciting and high-scoring season overall.

Blessed with an early wildcard in the bank, FPL managers would be wise to prioritise short-term fixtures at the start of the season rather than play the long game.

Five subs rule

Premier League managers are now permitted to make up to five substitutes in every top-flight match, which is likely to alter FPL significantly in the future.

The substitutes bench in FPL is only called into action if a player fails to register a single minute in a match.

Therefore, as Premier League bosses are set to call upon substitutes more frequently this season, auto-subs are likely to be less of a factor, with players more regularly coming on for one-point cameo appearances.

Whilst it is always worth having one or two reliable bench options on hand in case of unprecedented scenarios, managers should hardly spend any of their £100m budget on the substitutes this season and instead prioritise throwing money into the starting line-up.

Captaincy

With twice as many points on offer, captaincy is one of the most crucial aspects of FPL and seems to be overlooked by several players every season.

At £13.0m, Mohamed Salah could struggle to pay back his price tag in comparison to other value picks, but captaincy is where he and the likes of Harry Kane, Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland and Son Heung-min repay their value.

Looking ahead at the fixture schedule and deciding which player to give the armband to is an important part of the planning process.

On the one hand, managers do not want to spend unnecessary transfers chopping and changing their premium assets. On the other, they certainly do not want to miss out on a plum fixture because of a lack of forethought.

Therefore, it is worth thinking five or six gameweeks in advance at the start of the season with captaincy in mind - here is a list of the best captaincy options between GW1 and GW6 as it stands.

GW1

1. Mohamed Salah (Fulham vs. Liverpool)

2. Son Heung-min or Harry Kane (Spurs vs. Southampton)

3. Erling Haaland or Kevin De Bruyne (West Ham vs. Man City)

GW2

1. Erling Haaland or Kevin De Bruyne (Man City vs. Bournemouth)

2. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool vs. Crystal Palace)

3. Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool vs. Crystal Palace)

GW3

1. Son Heung-min or Harry Kane (Spurs vs. Wolves)

2. Raheem Sterling or Mason Mount (Leeds vs. Chelsea)

3. Gabriel Jesus or Bukayo Saka (Bournemouth vs. Arsenal)

GW4

1. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool vs. Bournemouth)

2. Son Heung-min or Harry Kane (Nottingham Forest vs. Spurs)

3. Erling Haaland or Kevin De Bruyne (Man City vs. Crystal Palace)

GW5

1. Erling Haaland or Kevin De Bruyne (Man City vs. Nottingham Forest)

2. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool vs. Newcastle)

3. Raheem Sterling or Mason Mount (Southampton vs. Chelsea)

Sportsmail's shortlist

Choosing assets from top six clubs - or from mid-table sides with strong fixtures - is usually the optimum way of attacking the start of the season.

Whilst daring managers can prosper from risky selections, the best strategy is to choose the tried-and-tested FPL options, choosing reliable players from top teams.

With that in mind, Sportsmail has assembled a shortlist of solid picks in each position.