“I was always very competitive since I was young, and I hated losing.” Few football fans would need long to identify the speaker. Cristiano Ronaldo has built an extraordinary career on that relentless competitiveness -- a man who rarely accepted defeat and never settled for being second best.

Cristiano Ronaldo spent more than two decades deciding matches, dragging teams through difficult moments and defying time itself to remain among soccer's elite even past his Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus prime.

Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo's final World Cup ended with a Spanish sting in the tail, courtesy of Mikel Merino's last-gasp winner that earned a 1-0 round-of-16 win on Monday, but he was unwilling to make a hasty call on his international future.

Portugal manager Roberto Martinez said he was leaving his role after Spain beat his side 1-0 in the World Cup last 16 on Monday, calling the defeat the end of a cycle for the team.

He is no longer the winger who breezed past defenders at will for Manchester United. Nor is he the unstoppable force Real Madrid relied upon to change a game in an instant.

Cristiano Ronaldo was in tears as Portugal picked up their second Nations League title by beating holders Spain 5-3 on penalties following a thrilling 2-2 draw in Sunday's final.

Four years ago, Cristiano Ronaldo produced an emphatic performance as the forward bagged his maiden World Cup hattrick to help Portugal draw 3-3 against Spain in their Group B encounter of the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Sochi.