The 16th Solheim Cup gets underway Friday at Gleneagles in Scotland. Golf Channel's Randall Mell and Brentley Romine are on site and offer up some thoughts to four big questions ahead of the matches.

Which rookie will have the biggest impact?

RANDALL MELL: Bronte Law seems to have been born for match play, with an almost pugnacious approach to the format. “It’s kind of nice to look someone in the eye and think that you’re intimidating them in some way,” she said before the UL International Crown last year. She was the first player from Great/Britain Ireland to go 5-0 in the Curtis Cup. She ought to be fun to see on the Solheim Cup stage for the first time.

BRENTLEY ROMINE: Nelly Korda. The younger Korda sister is a future world No. 1 and figures to be a mainstay on this U.S. team. She’ll have sister Jessica to lean on early as she begins her Solheim Cup career, but make no mistake, she’s more than ready for the pressure. Wet conditions will benefit the longer hitters, and Nelly is one of the best drivers of the golf ball in the world. She should play every session and rack up points for the Americans.

The most important player for the U.S. is …

MELL: Brittany Altomare is basically taking Cristie Kerr’s place in the American ranks. Altomare looks as if she’s going to replace Kerr in the pairing alongside Lexi Thompson. Kerr and Thompson have been the most dynamic pairing in women’s international team golf. They’re 11-1-2 together in Solheim Cup and UL International Crown play, but Kerr didn’t make this year’s team. There’s a big hole to fill with Kerr owning the record for most Solheim Cup points (21) in American team history.

ROMINE: Lexi Thompson. It’s been a roller-coaster couple of years for Thompson since the last Solheim Cup, yet she’ll enter her fourth cup as the Americans’ highest-ranked player. She needs to continue to play like it, because there’s a strong correlation between her play and the play of her team at this event. She’s gone 4-0-4, not losing a single match, in each of the past two cups (both U.S. wins). However, she played just three times in her Solheim debut in 2013, going 1-2 for a losing American side.

The most important player for Europe is …

MELL: Suzann Pettersen is the heart and soul of the European effort. Somehow, some way, she makes a difference. She was the centerpiece when Europe needed to turn the tide with the Americans dominating the event with three straight victories in ’05, ’07 and ’09. Pettersen was cumulatively 5-2-1 helping the Euros win in Ireland in ’11 and in Colorado in ’13. She was even the focus of the epic American comeback in ’15, when Pettersen called out Alison Lee for picking up a putt that wasn’t conceded, spurring the ire of the U.S. team in its Sunday singles charge.

ROMINE: Bronte Law. At 26th in the world rankings, she’s the second-highest-ranked European here at Gleneagles. With Suzann Pettersen a huge question mark this week, Team Europe needs someone to be a table-setter when it comes to killer instinct and fearlessness. The confident Law is the best fit to have that torch passed to. She’s just a rookie, but her 5-0 performance at the 2016 Curtis Cup is an indicator of the type of match-play maven she can be.

What storyline will ultimately decide the Solheim Cup?

MELL: Six American rookies will dictate the U.S. fate. It won’t be all on them, of course, but with so many first-timers, there’s no way the Americans can win without their collective success. The Americans haven’t had so many rookies since the competition’s inaugural event in 1990, when everyone was a rookie. With these rookies playing their first Solheim ever on foreign soil, in Scotland, the challenge is even greater.

ROMINE: Gleneagles’ PGA Centenary Course may be located in Scotland, but it is designed by an American (Jack Nicklaus) and is far from the classic links test found so frequently over here. The course will be soft and long this week, favoring the longer hitters, which the Americans have more of, and making these undulating greens less tricky. We’ll see a lot of birdies this week, which also favors an American team that features slightly better putters across the board. Most signs are pointing to an American victory, but it will come down to how they handle the cold, rainy and windy conditions because the golf course is very much right in front of them.

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – Danielle Kang made an entertaining rookie debut at the Solheim Cup in Iowa two years ago.

She sang, she danced, and she buried putts from all over the place winning three of her four matches while helping the Americans rout the Europeans.

Kang relishes attention. She said that during her debut.

But will she curb her flamboyance on the road, in Scotland?

“I hear that I’m going to be booed,” Kang said after a practice round Wednesday at Gleneagles.

Kang later said she was joking about that, but she did say she won’t be curbing her enthusiasm for the format.

“I'm loud, whether I'm in Nevada or in Scotland,” Kang said. “I don't think I change, no matter where I am.

“I'm definitely going to embrace the first tee. I'm going to embrace whenever I get a chance to hit it. I'm going to embrace the fans out there for the entire golf course, whenever I get to play. And I'm just embracing this vibe, that we all get to have and experience among teammates and the rival team.

“It's a lot of fun, and I'm excited to have a lot of fun out here.”

Kang, 26, a two-time LPGA winner and major champion, likes the match-play format. She showed that winning the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 2010 and ’11.

So, about that booing.

A British reporter reminded Kang of the Scots’ reputation as knowledgeable fans with great respect for the game.

“You're right,” Kang said. “Scotsmen are very respectful and honorable. This is where the home of golf started. This is where the home of golf is. So, I'm excited to see what the fans are going to be like, and I know I'm going to hear that ‘Ole’ song as well.

“It's definitely going to be a different vibe from Des Moines. I do know that. There will be more Europe chants than U.S.A. chants.”

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – American Annie Park didn’t abandon the long putter when the Rules of Golf outlawed anchoring.

In fact, she didn’t commit herself to the broomstick until after the ban was established in 2016.

Why?

Because she was desperate.

Park said she might not be on the U.S. Solheim Cup team taking on Europe this week if not for the long putter.

“To be honest, in 2017 I was going to quit golf,” Park said. “I was thinking about possible other professions that I wanted to do.”

Park, winner of the NCAA individual title while at USC in 2013, was struggling with a back injury and swing changes and lost full LPGA status at the end of the 2017 season. That’s when a friend recommended she try the long putter.

Six months later, Park won the ShopRite Classic for her first LPGA title.

The USGA and R&A never banned the putter. They just banned bracing the putter against the body.

“The long putter was kind of the turning point in my career,” Park said. “I went from almost quitting golf to winning a golf event, and this week making it to the Solheim. So, it's huge.”

Park is the only player using a long putter in the Solheim Cup. She might be the only full-time LPGA pro still using one. She is 21st in putting average on tour this year. She was 158th the year before she began using the long putter.

Park can’t definitively say why her putting came together with the broomstick. She just knows putts began falling shortly after she made the switch.

“I kind of clicked from that instant,” she said.

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – The U.S. holds a 10-5 all-time series lead in the Solheim Cup and has won the past two contests and five of the last seven.

But are the Europeans a better team?

Azahara Munoz and Carlota Ciganda seem to think so. In Wednesday’s final press conference, the Spaniards were asked about the differences in attitudes between themselves and the Americans.

“To be honest, I think that playing as a team comes very natural to Europeans,” Munoz said. “I feel that maybe because we grew up playing as a team a lot and American is more of an individualistic lifestyle, I guess. And we do everything together. We're more family-oriented – not that they're not; that sounded terrible. Sorry, I didn't mean that.”

But Munoz, who has been on three previous Solheim Cup teams (two winning), continued.

“We tend to do everything in groups ... and I think that really helps us,” she said. “A lot of people have been asking me, 'What do you do to make the team better?' And we don't try anything. We just do. Carlota and I were talking last night; I don't remember the last time I laughed so much. Every dinner is just nonstop. Like, we were joking how we had to get the physio to work on our faces because I was sore here from laughing.

“We just get along so great and we have so much fun together, so I think we really have that going on for us.”

Ciganda, now a four-time Solheim Cupper who joined Munoz on the winning Spanish team at the 2014 International Crown, agreed.

“Americans, they are great players. I think, as Azahara said, they're more individual,” she said. “They like to do their own thing. They like to be the best at anything they do, and I think that's really good. I think that's why in singles they're always very good.

"I think it's just the lifestyle. I think Europeans, we're more used to playing as a team. And we love that. I think you have to like that, have to love that. I think Americans, they want to be more – maybe more leaders or more – I don't know what's the word. We're just all one. We're all the same. We are a team and we are Europe.”

And they likely just gave the Americans some bulletin-board material.

Rory McIlroy has won the PGA Tour Player of the Year Award for the third time, officials announced on Wednesday.

McIlroy beat Brooks Koepka, Matt Kuchar and Xander Schauffele in player voting for the Jack Nicklaus Award, which he also won in 2012 and ’14.

Although McIlroy won three times during the 2018-19 season, including bookend victories at The Players and Tour Championship, Koepka was considered the front-runner for the award thanks to his play in the majors.

Koepka became the fifth player to finish in the top 5 at all four majors in a single season with his victory at the PGA Championship, runner-up finishes at the Masters and U.S. Open, and a tie for fourth at The Open.

“Brooks has had an incredible year, an incredible three years, really,” McIlroy said. “I think [the player vote] speaks volumes about what PGA Tour players feel [is] important. Players just don’t feel only four weeks are important. We play for more than just what the narrative suggests.”

The Tour doesn’t release vote totals for the Player of the Year Award and even McIlroy was denied the percentages when he asked. “They are tight-lipped,” he said.

By virtue of his win at East Lake, McIlroy claimed the FedExCup, capping off a season with 14 top-10s just two missed cuts in 19 started.

“I wanted to try and bring my best every single week I played,” he said. “The top 10s, the consistency, the work that I put in – the greatest compliment you can receive is that your peers feel you’ve done something pretty special.”

Liverpool's highly-rated academy forward Paul Glatzel has signed a new long-term contract with the club.

The 18-year-old, often highlighted as one of the standout talents in the youth set-up at Kirkby, has been on a rehabilitation programme at Melwood after sustaining knee ligament damage while making his first-team debut during preseason.

- All major completed transfer deals

Glatzel signed his first professional contract with Liverpool in February and was rewarded with improved terms on Wednesday after a sensational 2018-19 campaign.

He netted 28 goals for the under-18s last season and was the top scorer in the triumphant FA Youth Cup run.

The teenager was involved in Jurgen Klopp's preparations for 2019-20 before being injured in the 6-0 victory over Tranmere Rovers on July 11.

Born in Liverpool, Glatzel can lead the line or operate as a playmaker and joined the club at the pre-academy stage for U6.

The versatile attacker has dual heritage as both his parents are German and he has represented both the country of their birth and England at youth level.

Former Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany sat out his own testimonial after suffering a hamstring injury, but did receive some consolation after the club said it would commission a sculpture in his honour.

The Belgium defender, who left City to become player-manager at Anderlecht was back in Manchester for his testimonial on Wednesday, where he had to been due to play alongside former teammates in a clash against Premier League All-Star XI.

- Can you name City XI for Kompany's debut?
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Kompany has been blighted by injuries in recent seasons. His tally of 17 Premier League appearances last season was the most in a single campaign since 2014-15, when he managed 25.

The four-time Premier League-winning captain played against some of the best defenders in the world during his 11 years at the Etihad Stadium but said he rates Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk as the best because of the way the Netherlands international has transformed Liverpool.

"I go back to players that really impressed me when I played against them, central defenders, and I would bring it back to Virgil van Dijk," Kompany said.

"It is a weird one because he hasn't been on the scene for as long as John Terry or Rio Ferdinand but the signs he showed in the last few years, it shows if he had been at the top level for longer, he would be further.

"Being a defender is how you make your team more solid. The Liverpool before Van Dijk and after, it is a completely different set up."

City manager Pep Guardiola could be forgiven for wishing he could still call on Kompany after he lost Aymeric Laporte to a knee injury during the victory over Brighton before the international break.

Guardiola is hopeful John Stones will be available to face Norwich at the weekend following a muscle injury otherwise he will be forced to field either Fernandinho or Kyle Walker in an unfamiliar position in the centre of defence.

"The key thing is by losing Laporte you lose a big player and I think with the big players especially, you need them in the bigger games so that's where we'll see [if it has an impact]," Kompany said. "But the key strength of this Manchester City team and what Pep has been able to do is that it is relying more on the system than the individuals.

"If you go back through the last two years in which the team won five of the available six domestic trophies, they've had to deal with long spells of Fernandinho out, long spells of Kevin De Bruyne out, long spells of myself being out, Kun Aguero as well -- big players -- and the team has never seemed to collapse."

Kompany ended his spell at City by lifting the domestic Treble. The only thing missing from his C.V. is the Champions League but said his former club will not have to wait too much longer to add it to their trophy haul under Guardiola.

"The Champions League will come," Kompany said. "I said maybe eight years ago that winning the Premier League is inevitable because of the way people are working behind the scenes.

"If it was just about infrastructure and it looking fancy. I'd be more worried but because of how they work and the consistency of this club it would be ridiculous to bet against City winning the Champions League at some stage.

"It will happen -- it is a matter of time -- just like winning the Premier League was a matter of time because if you invest well and back the right people, it will happen."

If money were no object, which 11 players would you sign to form the ultimate team? This is the question we put to ESPN FC's experts ahead of the Champions League group stage, which begins Sept. 17.

We asked our experts to pick the XI they felt would be both indispensable and unbeatable in the pursuit of long-term glory. There were some basic rules:

- no more than two players from the same club
- use the 4-3-3 formation, a base template for so many top teams
- remain true to each player's position: no picking four center-backs and no using a star in a position he plays the least
- everyone's picks were collated and the most-selected player at each position made the cut for our Ultimate XI

Our panel: Gab Marcotti, Mark Ogden, Melissa Reddy, Musa Okwonga, James Horncastle, Ryan O'Hanlon, Nick Ames, Nick Miller, Julien Laurens, Andrew Hush, Jon Carter and Graham Hunter.

Who did our experts pick and how much would this team cost to build? (Answer to that second bit: roughly €1.2 billion at current market prices.) -- James Tyler

Jump to: GK | DF | MF | FW | Subs

Goalkeeper: Jan Oblak

Age: 26
Club/country: Atletico Madrid/Slovenia
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €100 million

The Atletico Madrid and Slovenia shot-stopper is the first surprise on the list, pipping arguably the top goalie in 2019, Liverpool's Alisson, to our XI. Oblak and Atleti might have finished a distant second to Barcelona in La Liga last season, but Oblak was a star from start to finish: Diego Simeone's side conceded just 29 goals in 38 league matches and outperformed their expected goals allowed by over 12 goals (data models believe they ought to have conceded 41 times across the season). As such, this pillar of consistency gets the nod.

Also receiving votes: Oblak beat out several keepers in England such as Alisson, David de Gea (Man United) and Ederson (Man City), showing that at least for now, the balance of goalie power is located in the Premier League.

What the experts said:

- "We don't really know how well he'd perform outside of Diego Simeone's defensive structure, but we also don't really care. He's the best shot-stopper in the world, and that's a keeper's No. 1 job." -- Ryan O'Hanlon

- "It took Oblak just 178 games to keep 100 clean sheets for Atletico Madrid; that is an astonishing achievement for a 26-year-old keeper who could easily have a dozen more years at the very top. His positioning and shot-stopping underpin everything good about Simeone's side." -- Nick Ames

Right-back: Joshua Kimmich

Age: 24
Club/country: Bayern Munich/Germany
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €70 million

It feels like he's only just starting out at his top level for club and country, having taken over the troublesome right-back spot in both situations from a genuine legend in Philipp Lahm. Kimmich can play several positions with aplomb, but his intelligence is best served on the flank, where he can mix it up on both sides of the ball.

What the experts said:

- "The weight of having to replace Lahm must be a heavy one to cope with, but Joshua Kimmich seems to be doing fine. He's experimented with different positions, but full-back seems to be his strongest, and he could turn out to be one of the greats." -- Nick Miller

- "The Bayern Munich right-back gets the nod over Trent Alexander-Arnold because he has much more in his locker defensively. His game intelligence also makes him capable of playing in different systems and positions." -- Mark Ogden

- "Thirteen assists last season? Check. Shaved that awful mustache? Check. Can also double as one of the best defensive midfielders on the planet on the off chance this group actually plays a competitive match together? Check." -- Ryan O'Hanlon

- "Tactically astute with an exceptional engine." -- Musa Okwonga

Centre-back: Virgil van Dijk

Age: 28
Club/country: Liverpool/Netherlands
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €90 million

The fact that a defender is a legitimate favorite to win a Ballon d'Or in 2019 -- the first time since 2006 -- says it all. When it comes to Van Dijk, he boasts transformative powers, converting Liverpool from a leaky, entertaining collective into a ruthless winning machine and also helming his national team's rebirth after years in the doldrums.

What the experts said:

- "The straw that stirs the drink. Covers deceptive amounts of ground and pops up at the other end with goals, too." -- Gab Marcotti

- "The team in front of Virg is nimble, a bit lightweight and, I'm guessing, unlikely to track back and cover. Not that he minds. The Dutchman will push up and stop danger before it arises. After all, Van Dijk is the first centre-back with a shot of winning the Ballon d'Or since Cannavaro." -- James Horncastle

- "Single players have made colossal impacts on teams plenty of times down the years, but has a defender had as profound an effect on a side as Van Dijk has on Liverpool? Without him, would they be European champions? Almost certainly not." -- Nick Miller

- "A colossus. A picture of composure. So hard to dribble past that when an elite forward actually manages it but falls over afterward -- as was the case with Arsenal's Nicolas Pepe -- they are lauded. Immense in the air and his long diagonal passes might as well be art. Unquestionably the best defender in the game, and by a sizeable margin, too." -- Melissa Reddy

Centre-back: Kalidou Koulibaly

Age: 28
Club/country: Napoli/Senegal
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €75 million

How is this guy still in Serie A? All the top clubs around Europe want Koulibaly, and few central defenders measure up to him in 2019. Recent game-winning "assist" for Juventus aside, the Napoli anchor is everything you need from a modern centre-back: pace, poise and power.

What the experts said:

- "Consistent, dominant, intelligent, so good in the air and with his feet. An all-around gem of a defender." -- Melissa Reddy

- "I figure one of our centre-backs will have to hang back when we have an attacking set piece, which is a shame because Koulibaly is a real handful in the opposition penalty area. Koulibaly has endured a difficult start to the season but that changes nothing for me. I want the reigning Serie A defender of the year to bulldoze his way up the pitch and play those rainbow diagonals out wide so our wingers can hurt defenders on the dribble." -- James Horncastle

- "Heart of a lion, brains of a fox. Size, speed and leadership." -- Gab Marcotti

Left-back: Andrew Robertson

Age: 25
Club/country: Liverpool/Scotland
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €60 million

Robertson famously tweeted, "life is rubbish with no money #needajob" back in 2012 when he was waiting to find a first pro contract, but the fiery full-back soon signed with Queens Park in Scotland's third division and never looked back. Few can do what Robertson can do with the ball in wide positions, and only his Reds teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold has him beaten when it comes to delivering consistently menacing crosses for their dynamic front three to convert.

The Scotland defender plays the game without a filter, and while his overenthusiasm can be an issue at times, he's one of the unsung heroes amid Liverpool's renaissance.

Bayern's David Alaba, Barca standout Jordi Alba and the seemingly ageless Aleksandar Kolarov, now a force for AS Roma, also received votes, but nobody really came close to replacing the Liverpool tyro.

What the experts said:

- "Consistently produces 8/10 performances in both the defensive and offensive elements of his game. Exceptional engine, delivery and Scotland's captain is robust; he is hardly ever unavailable for selection." -- Melissa Reddy

- "Crosses like a winger, works tirelessly at both ends of the pitch and does the basics of a full-back's job with aplomb." -- Andrew Hush

- "Tenacious and team-oriented with a brutal work ethic, Robertson is a tremendous athlete with a flood of goal assists and goal chances laid on to boot. How could he not be in here?" -- Graham Hunter

- "The Liverpool left-back's energy levels have to be seen to be believed. A rapid, searing outlet who can cut defences apart with his delivery and runs from deep, while still boasting the recovery powers to get back and keep things tight defensively." -- Nick Ames

Midfield: Kevin De Bruyne

Age: 28
Club/country: Manchester City/Belgium
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €130 million

It says a lot that De Bruyne missed huge chunks of the 2018-19 season -- and Man City's impressive domestic Treble -- but is still almost a unanimous pick for one of our three coveted midfield places. When fully fit, there's simply nobody with the combination of passing prowess and anticipation that the Belgian playmaker possesses. He's continued to improve under Pep Guardiola's watchful eye at Man City and is decisive in virtually every game he plays.

De Bruyne was close to a consensus Ultimate XI by our panel of experts as well; only Lionel Messi (see later) had a 100% vote.

What the experts said:

- "This midfield could teach geometry. It's all about the angles. Imagine a scenario in which Paul Pogba has taken too many touches. Your defence has time to set and backs itself not to be beaten. De Bruyne will find a pass that beats you. An improbable angle. The tightest of gaps and he's put Messi through for his fifth goal of the night." -- James Horncastle

- "Sees passes several days before anyone else but also possesses the kind of laser-guided passing to be able to use that extrasensory perception he's been blessed with. He's never played with these strikers and, if he did, we'd see a still more spectacular De Bruyne." -- Graham Hunter

- "The perfect blend of energy, fantasy and defensive responsibility." -- Musa Okwonga

- "Vision: check. Passing range: check. Goals, assists and the ability to bend a game to his team's will: check. An absolute marvel to watch when he is on his A-game, which is quite often." -- Melissa Reddy

- "Struggled with injury last season but De Bruyne's energy, passing and goal threat make him a key man for Guardiola. A modern-day Steven Gerrard." -- Mark Ogden

Midfield: N'Golo Kante

Age: 28
Club/country: Chelsea/France
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €100 million

The era of the box-to-box midfielder might have passed for the most part, but Kante is the rarest of modern players in that he can literally cover the work of two or three players, and do it well to boot. He was instrumental in Leicester City's miraculous Premier League title for his knack of winning back possession and covering the entire pitch in support of Riyad Mahrez & Co., and now his prodigious skills are Chelsea's gain.

Kante pipped the likes of Bernardo Silva, Toni Kroos and Fabian Ruiz in our Ultimate XI, and while the Blues are still figuring out how to extract the best from Kante in the middle, he'd walk into the starting XI of any top club team with ease. A priceless addition.

What the experts said:

- "Watch how Chelsea play when he's not in the team, and his value will become clear." -- Nick Miller

- "To paraphrase a Leicester coach's famous line, this team would have De Jong in midfield with Kante on either side." -- Andrew Hush

- "There is Chelsea's midfield with N'Golo Kante and there is simply no Chelsea midfield without him. The France international's ability to stifle opposition attacks before sparking his team's own offensive moves is sublime. There are countless games that speak to Kante's brilliance, but the first half of the Super Cup final against Liverpool will have you questioning if there was three of him on the pitch at the same time." -- Melissa Reddy

- "Literally a phenomenon. It's not just the fact that he's physically capable of doing the work of three players, or that he's psychologically inclined to do so. This remarkable guy is also a shrewd, savvy footballer. Don't think it's all just hard work and running which separates Kante from the rest -- good football brain." -- Graham Hunter

Midfield: Frenkie De Jong

Age: 22
Club/country: Barcelona/Netherlands
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €85 million

De Jong's rise has been stratospheric but entirely deserved. He was the swaggering midfield playmaker that led Ajax to within minutes of last season's Champions League final, but everyone knew of his brilliance before the spring, as he'd already agreed to his summer move to Barcelona back in January. He projects to be the Xavi replacement the Spanish giants have been craving ever since the diminutive dynamo decamped for Qatar back in 2015, and has already slotted in seamlessly to revive a flagging midfield.

Other creators like Paul Pogba and Thiago Alcantara couldn't come close to knocking the young Dutchman out of our Ultimate XI, either. The sky's the limit for him in Spain, though bringing the Champions League back to the Camp Nou is surely top of his to-do list.

What the experts said:

- "Just to be sure, it's Frenkie not Nigel. This isn't a team that goes around kicking opposition playmakers at chest height. Frenkie is responsible for 500 of our 700 passes a game. He picks the ball up off our centre-backs and elegantly moves and eludes our opponents with smart one-touch give-and-gos." -- James Horncastle

- "If we want our team to dominate their opponents -- and let's face it, we do -- then De Jong is an absolute must. Tactically savvy and technically impeccable, he has an unparalleled ability to pick the ball up in deep areas before tearing teams to shreds with his courageous dribbling and piercing passing." -- Tom Williams

Forward: Lionel Messi

Age: 32
Club/country: Barcelona/Argentina
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €150 million

What do you say about greatness?

What the experts said:

- "He's a different player these days, a man of moments rather than complete game dominance, but what moments. Messi can stand still for 87 minutes but use the other three to score a hat trick that will make you thank your deity of choice that you watch this game." -- Nick Miller

- "The best. Simple as that. Unparalleled brain, skills still burning white hot, throbs with a determination to win, scores, makes, opens opponents up. Entertains." -- Graham Hunter

- "He won his first Ballon d'Or in 2009. Ten years later, he's still the best goal-scorer, finisher, creator, passer, dribbler, free kick-taker -- and best player -- in the world." -- Ryan O'Hanlon

- "He needs no introduction and even if he did, none would be possible." -- Musa Okwonga

Forward: Kylian Mbappe

Age: 20
Club/country: Paris Saint-Germain/France
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €200 million

We keep waiting for Mbappe to suffer that "sophomore slump," but the French kid, fresh out of his teens, continues to add personal and team trophies to his collection while showing little sign of slowing down. As a happy-go-lucky, all-action forward at PSG, it hasn't taken Mbappe long to prove he's worthy of a leadership role despite playing for a star-studded, ego-laden team including the likes of Neymar, Thiago Silva and Edinson Cavani.

He already has a World Cup title with France, has won just about everything one can win in France and it's surely a matter of time before he tries his hand at a bigger challenge. We'd never dream of rooting against him.

Mbappe is already PSG's de facto leader and it won't be long until he's the king of the sport. Just wait and see. Other talented youngsters such as Jadon Sancho and Joao Felix got votes from our Ultimate XI panel, but 10 of 12 experts had room for the 20-year-old from the Paris suburbs in their lineups.

What the experts said:

- "The most thrilling and visceral footballer around at the moment, Kylian Mbappe is a force of nature. And still only 20; if we're lucky, we've got another 15 years of him to enjoy." -- Nick Miller

- "The player primed to dominate in the post-Messi/Ronaldo space. Whether stationed on the left or on the right, the 20-year-old is deadly in the finish, with his take-ons and quality chance creation." -- Melissa Reddy

- "How do you leave out the likes of Raheem Sterling, Sadio Mane or Mohamed Salah from a team of the best players in the world? If Ronaldo and Messi take the first two attacking spots, Kylian Mbappe simply has to be take the third, regardless of the competition." -- Mark Ogden

- "Last season's 39-goal haul at club level gave an indication of the lethal centre-forward that Mbappe now stands poised to become. An exhilarating, generational talent, the 20-year-old has already eclipsed Neymar at PSG and it now seems only a matter of time before he takes over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the world's outstanding footballer." -- Tom Williams

Forward: Cristiano Ronaldo

Age: 34
Club/country: Juventus/Portugal
Estimated transfer value (via Transfermarkt): €90 million

The Messi vs. Ronaldo rift has raged for over a decade, but picking one over the other always felt like a waste of time, and it's no surprise that both of the perennial Ballon d'Or winners made our Ultimate XI. This time, Ronaldo wasn't as unanimous as some of his peers, but his never-say-die attitude and constant productivity in his club or country's biggest matches make him the Ultimate X Factor in our team.

If there's one game between your team and eternal glory, you'd do a lot worse than having Ronaldo on the pitch to make a vital contribution.

What the experts said:

- "As his staggering consistency in the Champions League demonstrates, Ronaldo is football's ultimate big-game player, and even with his 35th birthday just around the corner, he remains a terrifying prospect for opposition defences. Our team will get goals with Ronaldo, obviously, but perhaps more importantly, it will also get the heart of a champion." -- Tom Williams

- "Quite simply, Ronaldo is a goal machine, and despite now being well into his 30s, the Juventus forward remains the man most likely to deliver when it matters in the Champions League." -- Mark Ogden

"Subs bench," aka other players receiving significant votes

GK Alisson Becker, Liverpool/Brazil: "Not just a great keeper, he's excellent with his feet, a nice guy and very handsome, too. What more do you want?" -- Gab Marcotti

RB Trent Alexander-Arnold, Liverpool/England: "Trent is from our town. He's been with us since he was a kid and it's always been his dream to play in our colours. When Messi retires, the armband is his. We value his imagination and quick thinking at full-back. The standard of his delivery is so high that we've had to tell De Bruyne to keep his hands by his sides because he can't stop instinctively applauding them." -- James Horncastle

CB Sergio Ramos, Real Madrid/Spain: "Not to everyone's liking, but the Real Madrid captain is a defender and leader in the truest sense. Perhaps one of a dying breed and maybe lucky to edge out Matthijs de Ligt, but Ramos is still one of the best in the world." -- Mark Ogden

CB Gerard Pique, Barcelona/Spain: "Simply a brilliant footballer. Possesses every skill needed to anchor this team, to play out from the back, to pass and to stay aerially competitive but above all, he's fired by a rapacious hunger to win and keep winning." -- Graham Hunter

LB Jordi Alba, Barcelona/Spain: "Still doing it after all these years, Jordi Alba has been a constant for Barcelona since signing for them in 2012, and even at age 30 he doesn't seem to have lost any of his dynamism." -- Nick Miller

MF Bernardo Silva, Man City/Portugal: "Does more need to be mentioned than Guardiola saying his starting XI at Manchester City is 'Bernardo and 10 more players?' Yes? OK. Technically incredible and tenacious, he is enjoyable to watch both for his abilities and how much of a nuisance he is to the opposition." -- Melissa Reddy

FW Eden Hazard, Real Madrid/Belgium: "Narrowly ahead of Raheem Sterling and Sadio Mane, since the only player in world football who can run riot to greater effect is Messi." -- Musa Okwonga

FW Mohamed Salah, Liverpool/Egypt: "The best attacker in the Premier League warrants a place in the world XI. His 2017-18 season was Messi-esque, and he followed that up with another Golden Boot for himself and another European Cup for his club. Your annual reminder: He cost less than Gylfi Sigurdsson." -- Ryan O'Hanlon

LOS ANGELES -- The LA Galaxy's 17-year-old forward, Efrain Alvarez, made his way out of Dignity Health Sports Park long after Swedish legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Mexico national team midfielder Jonathan dos Santos and chart-topping pop star Becky G, who's dating LA Galaxy midfielder Sebastian Lletget, were long gone.

Alvarez showered and changed following the Galaxy's 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul in Leagues Cup action on Aug. 20 before making the 30-minute drive back to his East Los Angeles home, where he lives under his parents' roof. A few hours later, his father, "Chencho" (a shortened version of Cresencio), and mother, Alicia, would wake up at 3:40 a.m. ahead of their 5 a.m. shift at a butcher shop.

As the son of Mexican immigrants, flipping between cultures and languages is a part of daily life, but the different worlds in which the teenage Alvarez has been moving have become increasingly marked since he became an integral part of the Galaxy's first-team squad this year. Alvarez has long been talked about in glowing terms, both for the Galaxy -- with whom he signed a professional deal at age 15 -- and at the youth national team level for Mexico and the U.S. (more on that later), but after impressing with an assist in his MLS debut in March, a lot of what has been said and written on a national level has revolved around his budding "bromance" with Ibrahimovic.

On the face of it, Ibrahimovic and Alvarez seem to have little in common. The former is 20 years older, almost a foot taller and has won a museum-worthy collection of trophies. Alvarez is barely taking his baby steps in a first-team professional environment, but Ibrahimovic has seen something in Alvarez and hasn't been afraid to talk him up.

"You have players that play football and you have players that think football," the Swede said in July. "He's a player that thinks football, and they're better players, because the guys that play football, they are trained to play football. The guys that think football, they are made to play football. That's a big difference."

Alvarez's father said that Ibrahimovic -- who famously likes to refer to himself as a lion -- looks after his son "as if he was his cub." And like any 17-year-old would, "Efra" is soaking up as much info as possible in return.

"[Zlatan] is such a cool guy," Alvarez told ESPN FC outside the Galaxy locker room. "Since I met him the first day, he always wanted to help me. I met him and he started giving me advice, and once you hear advice from him, you want to learn. He knows what it takes.

"He even said, 'If you need help, I'll help you; I just want the best for you. I know the potential you have, so I'm coming to help you; I'm not coming to hurt you or damage you. Other players, I kill them, but with you I see potential, so I'm trying to help you.'"

There might be more in common between Alvarez and Ibrahimovic than first meets the eye. Zlatan grew up in the notorious Rosengard neighborhood of Malmo, to parents from Bosnia and Croatia, and used soccer as an escape. Alvarez's start in the game was inspired at least in part by his parents' desire to steer him away from the pull of the streets in the City Terrace neighborhood of East L.A.

"[City Terrace] was a little scary; you couldn't walk around later than 8 p.m. or so," Alvarez said. "You could, but it was risky. There were a lot of gangs around us, so [my father] tried to help us avoid that with soccer the priority to get out of there."

To write that Alvarez's family is "football crazy" is an understatement. Chencho is a huge Chivas fan who emigrated to the United States 35 years ago from the Jalisco town of Jocotepec, on the banks of Lake Chapala. He met his Zacatecas-born wife in Los Angeles in 1987, settled in City Terrace in 1992 and had six kids, five of whom are involved in soccer. Chencho even used to coach, and he has invested a lot into steering his kids toward the game.

"It's exhausting because you have to dedicate a lot of time to them," Chencho said. "All your time is football: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Going from one place to another, from Monday to Thursday training, resting Friday and games on Saturday and Sunday -- and then I also work at a butchers."

"It's how we get by, how we live," he added. "We have to work hard."

Alvarez, who used to share a room with his four brothers, doesn't look like a kid on a soccer pitch. His sturdy frame means he can handle it in a physical sense, while his inner confidence shines through in his audacious style of play. Yet over the course of a lengthy interview, it took time for the twitchy teenager to open up.

Alvarez started to play at the age of 4, originally as a goalkeeper, but he cried when the ball hit him in the stomach during his first real game and soon learned that his natural position was at the other end of the pitch.

"After, the coach was like, 'I'm going to put you out on the field,'" Alvarez said. "I remember one day I got mad because we were losing, so I just took the ball and started taking everyone on, and then after that I was like, 'Wow, my position is there.'"

The youngster advanced quickly through youth soccer, regularly playing above his age group. He even caught Eric Cantona's eye at a training session at New York Cosmos West with the Frenchman, then the director of soccer for the Cosmos, drawn to the youngster's technical ability.

Stints at Cosmos, Total Futbol Academy and Chivas USA eventually led to the Galaxy, and naturally, U.S. Soccer kept tabs on him. Alvarez's youth national team career with the U.S. began at age 12, and he captained the U15s side in 2016. But he was left unhappy at how he and teammates were treated, something that caught the attention of Mexico's coaching staff.

"After U.S. camp, I didn't like it at all how they treated me, not only me but some other players," Alvarez said. "I don't [know] how Mexico found out, but they found out, and they came to talk to me, actually to my house."

Alvarez was asleep when Juan Carlos Ortega -- formerly director of youth national teams with the Mexican federation and now director of methodology and development with the Galaxy -- knocked on the door and made the case for Mexico.

"I was in my parents' room sleeping and the living room is next to it, so I woke up and I was in my shirt and boxers and I put on some shorts and walked out barefooted. I didn't recognize the guy, but my dad said, 'He's [from the Mexico] national team,'" Alvarez explained.

"So, he talked to me and my dad -- I was still half asleep -- and he told me he wanted to invite me to the Mexico national team and the next camp is two or three weeks from now. So, they asked if I'd like to go."

In September 2016, Alvarez switched to Mexico's team and has represented it at U15 and U17 levels in the years since. He also appears committed to El Tri for October's U17 World Cup in Brazil. But it's not guaranteed that the forward will always represent Mexico, according to Alvarez's father, who said the United States is "waiting for Mexico to commit a small error" and are "continuing to try" to bring him back into the fold of the Stars and Stripes.

Alvarez and his father met U.S. head coach Gregg Berhalter earlier this year to talk about the USMNT's project.

"[Berhalter] is a really nice guy," Alvarez said. "He told me the process and everything for the U.S. team, how it's involving the youth and the thinking. It's a good thing that they have going."

But Mexico isn't sitting back. Head coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino had planned to include Alvarez in a minicamp for young players in Mexico City Aug. 18-21 but was thwarted by Galaxy coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto wanting to keep the youngster because of first-team commitments.

"The focus right now is Mexico," according to Alvarez, who will make a final decision on what is best for him and his family further down the line.

Alvarez's father is adamant that while he leans toward El Tri for emotional reasons, he understands that his son's roots are in the United States and that the final decision will be down to him.

"If he says Mexico, it is Mexico. If he says the United States, it's the United States -- and I say it with all the pain in my heart," said Alvarez's father. "I prefer Mexico because I am Mexican, but my son has his roots here, he was born here."

"At the end of the day, you respect both, but it's what you want yourself," is Alvarez's take. "You're going to talk to your family about it and see what they like and what didn't they like, and at the end of the day, it's the player's decision."

The appeal of an attacking player such as Alvarez is easy to see, but the message from those at the Galaxy is that there is still a long way to go to polish the raw elements. Dos Santos, who spent his youth career at Barcelona's famed training academy La Masia and is close to Alvarez, said Alvarez is a player with the potential to have a career with the Mexican national team. He describes him as an "uncut diamond" who "still has a lot to learn and improve."

Barros Schelotto is working to help Alvarez read plays quicker, understand his positioning and press at the right time. Then there is the tendency Alvarez has to go missing in games, showing an inconsistency that is common in younger players and needs to be worked on.

Alvarez's father is open in admitting he is concerned about the attention and relative fame going to his teenage son's head but is put at ease by the likes of Barros Schelotto, Ibrahimovic and dos Santos being on hand to steer him in the right direction. Alvarez's priority, away from the glitz and the glamour that he often is surrounded by these days, is to pay back those who have invested most in him where it counts.

"There's no other way to thank [my family] than working hard, being here, being the best I can be," Alvarez said. "That's the way I can show I'm thankful. Show them on the field what they deserve. To make them proud there."

Mitchell Marsh has been challenged to reach Ben Stokes' standards of fitness and durability ahead of his latest chance to secure a place in the Australian Test team, in the afterglow of Ashes retention at Old Trafford.

Marsh was called in ahead of the vice-captain Travis Head for the fifth Test at The Oval from Thursday, as an additional bowling option for the captain Tim Paine and also as a right-handed batsman after the litany of troubles caused for them by Broad's seam and swing.

Paine revealed that Marsh had not only been dropped from the team against India last summer due to underperformance, but also because the selectors and team management felt that he was carrying too much extra weight to do the job they required of him. The herculean example provided by Stokes at Headingley, where he virtually bowled 24 overs unchanged in the third innings before conjuring a batting miracle in the fourth, has set a high bar, but Paine reckoned that Marsh, at 27, could still reach similar heights.

"Mitch has worked his backside off actually for the last six or seven months," Paine said. "He got some pretty honest feedback when he was dropped during the India series about where he was at both physically and with his cricket. He had a choice to make, either to sulk about it or to do something about it, and Mitch at the moment is as fit as we've seen him. During this Ashes even watching Ben Stokes go about it, we've constantly spoken to him about being at that sort of fitness where you can bowl 25-30 overs and then come out and score a hundred.

"That's something Mitch has watched up close and something he's aspiring to, so certainly when he's fitter his bowling goes to another level. When you're a boy the size he is, it's hard to run in all day when you're carrying a few extra kilos, so he's worked really hard to work them off, he's always worked very hard on his cricket and we know the talent he's got. We're looking forward to seeing him put all his hard work into action this week."

There was some irony to Marsh taking Head's place, since Head had himself replaced Marsh as one of the team's vice-captains in January. the deputy leadership has been thrown around like a touch football over the past year, pin-balling between Marsh, Josh Hazlewood, Head and Pat Cummins. Paine explained that Head was being left out primarily so the tourists had an extra pace bowling option, and he was later seen in lengthy conversation with the coach Justin Langer on a series of slow laps around The Oval during training.

"We've been really clear with Travis why he's not playing this game," Paine said. "We think he's had a fantastic start, he's played 10 Tests and has a very healthy average but we want to get the make-up right to win this Test match and unfortunately we had to make a really tough call on someone, and it happened to be Travis.

"But he's a huge part of Australian cricket's future, he's a gun young player and he's getting better all the time, so it's disappointing for him that he's not playing this Test match, he'd dearly love to obviously, but we'll go back to Australia, conditions will be different, there's no doubt he's in the top six or seven batsmen in our country."

Marsh (match figures of 5 for 86) and Peter Siddle (6 for 67) were Australia's two leading bowlers at The Oval when Australia won the final match of the 2015 series, standing up the seam of the Dukes ball and moving it around after the series had been decided in England's favour at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge. That history suggests that Siddle should be a strong chance to play this time around, with the Australians waiting until match day to decide whether one of Cummins (48 overs in Manchester), Hazlewood (42.3) or Mitchell Starc (38) need to be spelled.

"Looking at the conditions and the series being a long and tough one, we've kept the same bowling group that was together last Test match, they've bowled a lot of overs and we feel that bringing Mitchell in will ease a bit of the workload on them," Paine said. "So it was a really tough call on Travis Head who's had a great start to his Test career, but we just wanted a bit more bowling depth in the squad to cover what looks like a really good wicket and be able to look after our big fast bowlers. Give them another half a day, see how they've pulled up and then make a decision on that side, the final make-up of it."

"When you're a boy the size he is, it's hard to run in all day when you're carrying a few extra kilos, so he's worked really hard to work them off"

James Pattinson was not included in the final 12, but Paine forecast that, like Starc, he would be used more often in Australia this summer, with something of a marker laid down now for how the team will manage their deep and varied pace bowling resources. Jhye Richardson, on his way back from injury, will be another member of that battery back home.

"James Pattinson is someone who we've been really pleased with what he's done in his return to Test cricket over here, he's bowling very, very well," Paine said. "He's going to be a huge asset for us going forward and we've said from the start we want to make sure we look after him so he's got a lot more years in him of Test cricket, we can't wait to get him back to Australia and unleash him during the summer.

"We spoke a lot about how we felt we needed to change the way we picked our attacks over in England. I think over the years we've had a pretty good formula in Australia and clearly our bigger, taller faster bowlers work well in Australia so again that's where we see a really exciting six months for James Pattinson coming up and Mitchell Starc, those guys who haven't played as much during this series. So we are excited we're going to have them fresh and ready to go for the home summer."