Jose Mourinho's story with Barcelona could have developed in a completely different way. Years before becoming the Catalans' biggest enemy as coach of Real Madrid, the Portuguese was one step away from sitting on the bench at the “Camp Nou“.
The curious story is revealed by journalist Xavi Torres to radio RAC1.
Everything goes back to 2008, when Barcelona was looking for a successor to Frank Rijkaard. At that time, Mourinho was the favorite in the internal selection of the management. According to Torres, in the first vote on the board of directors, it was the Portuguese specialist who collected the most votes. At the same time, Pep Guardiola - the coach who later brought the most successful era in the club's history - did not receive a single support.
The club made direct contact with Mourinho. Barça representatives travelled to Galicia to meet him. Former vice-president Marc Ingla was present at the talks, while sporting director Txiki Begiristain was also due to be there but was unable to make it due to logistical problems.
“On the day of the vote, Mourinho won by a convincing margin. Manuel Pellegrini, who was then having a great season with Villarreal, received three votes. And Pep Guardiola did not receive a single vote“, says Torres.
At first glance, Mourinho is the winner, but the final decision does not come from this vote alone. President Joan Laporta listened to the opinions of Johan Cruyff and Txiki Begiristain, who strongly supported Guardiola's candidacy.
This choice changed the history of Barcelona forever.
Even more interesting is that Mourinho had a great desire to return. Before that, he worked at the “Camp Nou“ as an assistant and translator for Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal.
Instead of returning to Barça, the Portuguese took over Inter, where he achieved historic triumphs, and then took charge of Real Madrid. Thus, his paths with the Catalans crossed again, but this time as rivals, and one of the fiercest confrontations in modern football was born.