Did you catch Cristiano Ronaldo's final flourish before he bid farewell to his 30s? It was the 78th minute against Al Wasl in the AFC Champions League, two days before his 40th birthday.

Cristiano Ronaldo has not mellowed with age. Time has done nothing to soften his sharp edges, to temper his competitive zeal, to slow his unrelenting drive. The old fire still burns, the flames ...