When Cristiano Ronaldo hangs up his boots, I will remember him as one thing: relentless.
In an era when he and Lionel Messi have been compared to one another, it’s been almost impossible to remove the other player from debates or conversations about either player.
You mense know, it’s always the question of “who’s better?”.
But at some point, you have to just give the credit where it’s due and forgot those arguments.
One day, when we come for judgement at the end, we will be alone. And it’s what we did that will be judged.
And Ronaldo and Messi deserve to be judged on their own merits.
So with Ronaldo tied on a world-record 109 international goals, the Portuguese superstar is one more strike away from standing all alone.
Getting to that milestone has been an incredible journey of persistence and reinvention.
Ronaldo burst onto the international scene as an 18-year-old, making his debut in 2003.
At that time, I was still a third-year university student, eating cafeteria chiprolls and far from starting out as a sports journalist.
Already an FA Cup winner with Manchester United, Ronaldo was Portugal’s star as they hosted Euro 2004.
And there were huge expectations for the youngster.
Known then as a winger with the helese stepovers, goals weren’t really part of his game yet.
A maer mannetjie with a bag of tricks, the teenager could be seen getting kicked by older manne who couldn’t get near him on the ball.
Half of the aggression he would bring on himself with his diving and play-acting.
But five Euros ago, he made his name on debut, scoring in an opening-day defeat to Greece.
He’d go on to score a penalty in the shootout victory over England in the quarterfinals and fire his nation into a home final with a goal against the Dutch in the semifinals, before his tournament ended in tears against unfancied Greece again.
Many stars in the game would have to be satisfied with that run, as it turned out for Rui Costa and Luis Figo.
But for Ronaldo, it would just be the start.
Let’s skip to 2010 and his World Cup here in Mzansi.
By the time he touched down here, he had already been hitting the gym, moved to Real Madrid for a then world-record fee and won the first of five Ballons d’Or.
It wouldn’t be a happy time, with one goal against North Korea in Cape Town being his only strike here before going out in the last 16 to eventual winners Spain at the same venue.
I was there that night and I saw his tears as he left SA with 23 goals in 74 internationals.
But that’s when things started to change for him.
His game evolved from a winger to a goal machine.
In his next 104 games, he would add 86 goals.
Three of those would come at Euro 2016 as Portugal won the title.
But for Ron, it was bittersweet after a collision with Dimitri Payet in the final meant he had to watch his team battle into extra time to win it in Paris.
He says lifting that trophy as captain was his defining moment, but another could yet be on it’s way.
With a record 12 European Championships goals, five of them in this tournament already – his best tally at a competition – there is no doubt that he wants more when Portugal tackle Belgium on Sunday night.