We take a look back from one of Football Biggest rivalries.
Jose Mourinho Vs Pep Guardiola, A Rivalry that lighted up the La Liga, The Champions League & Now the Premier League. Although, it is quite funny that Jose Mourinho Coached Pep Guardiola at Barcelona as an Assistant Manager. Here's all the stats from such great rivalry.
José Mourinho (The special one) and Pep Guardiola are part of the most successful manager and they are undoubtedly the two best manager there is in football now, and they have been battling it out since 2009.
Pep and José have met 22 times with the Catalan having the upper hand with 10 win and his Portuguese rival winning just 5 games and 7 games ended in a tie.
HERE'S THE BREAKDOWN:
GUARDIOLA'S BARCELONA VS MOURINHO'S INTER MILAN;
Four meetings: Guardiola wins: 2, Draws: 1, Mourinho wins: 1
The two managers met first in the champions league group stage of 2009. Their first game ended in a 0-0 draw at the San Siro stadium. The reverse feature saw the Spanish win 2-0 at the Nou kamp. "we're far from being Barca in terms of individual qualities and profile, as a team Barcelona are better than us, but if I had to play Barca tomorrow, I would already be ready, if you tell me Inter will face Barca in the semi-finals, I will accept it already" Mou said after the game.
Mourinho got his wish, Inter met Barca in the semi-finals of the champions league and this time Jose's Italian side triumphed over the Spanish side 3-1 at the San Siro in the first leg but in the second leg Pep's side won the game 1-0 but José side qualified on a 3-2 aggregate, José's Inter went on to win the champions league.
GUARDIOLA'S BARCELONA VS MOURINHO'S REAL MADRID;
Eleven meetings: Guardiola wins: 5, Draws: 4, Mourinho wins: 2
On 28 May 2010, it was confirmed that Mourinho would take over from Manuel Pellegrini at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
During the next two seasons, as the pair vied for domestic and European honours, their relationship turned ugly.
A thumping 5-0 win for Guardiola in Mourinho's first El Clasico handed the Spaniard a head-start. "I'm proud the whole world has seen how we play football," he said. The win over Real Madrid was Mourinho's heaviest defeat as a manager.
But it would be a run of four meetings in a little over two weeks from mid-April, as Barcelona and Real Madrid clashed in La Liga, the Copa del Rey and Champions League, which saw the pressure get to both men.
Their next meeting in the La Liga ended in a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu that assured Barcelona of the league title.
But Cristiano Ronaldo clinched the Copa del Rey in extra-time four days later in a 1-0 win over Barca, ending Real's 18-year wait to lift the Spanish cup. After the game Guardiola criticize the officials by saying "the linesman must have had great eyesight to spot that Pedro was in an offside position" before scoring what would have been the opening goal.
"Up until now there was a very small group of coaches who didn't talk about referees and a larger group who did," said Mourinho ahead of the teams' Champions League semi-final first-leg. "Now, with Pep's comments, we have started a new era with a third group, featuring only one person, a man who criticises [the referee] when he makes good decisions. This is completely new to me."
"As senor Mourinho has called me Pep, I'm going to call him Jose," he said in his pre-match press conference. "Tomorrow at 8.45pm we will face each other on the pitch. Off the pitch he's won. He's been winning off the pitch all season. Let them give him a Champions League for it so he can enjoy it and take it home. In the press room he is 'el p*** jefe' (the ******* boss) and the one who knows more than everyone else." Guardiola hit back at Mourinho.
The managers met again in the champions league semi-final but it was Guardiola's men who went on to win the first leg of the Champions League semi-final 2-0 at the Bernabeu with two late goals from Messi.
For the fifth game in a row (including Inter Milan) Mourinho had a player sent off against Guardiola side. Pepe was shown a red on 61 minutes and Mourinho himself was dismissed for protesting.
After the match, José launched an attack on Barcelona and the integrity of UEFA officials. "One day, I would like Josep Guardiola to win this competition properly," he said in a post-match conference.
He continued "If I tell UEFA what I really think and feel, my career would end now. Instead I will just ask a question to which I hope one day to get a response: Why? Why Ovrebo? Why Busacca? Why De Bleeckere? Why Stark?" he continued, naming the referee who officiated Chelsea's exit the previous season and the three referees to have taken charge of his most recent matches with Guardiola.
"Why? Because every semi-final the same things happen. We are talking about an absolutely fantastic football team, so why do they need that? Why? Why does a team as good as they are need something that is so obvious that everyone sees it?"
"I don't know if it is the UNICEF sponsorship or if it is because they are nice guys. I don't understand. They have power and we have no chance. All I can do is leave that question here in the air and hope that one day I will get the response. They have to get to the final, and they'll get there, full stop."
"Josep Guardiola is a fantastic coach. But I have won two Champions Leagues and he has won only one Champions League - and that is one that would embarrass me. I would be ashamed to have won it with the scandal of Stamford Bridge. If he wins it this year, it will be with the scandal of the Bernabeu. Deep down, if they are good people, it cannot taste right for them. I hope one day Guardiola has the chance of winning a brilliant, clean championship with no scandal." José said.
With Mourinho serving a touchline ban the sides drew 1-1 at the Nou Camp, sealing Barcelona's passage to the final. "This has been one of the most beautiful nights I have ever lived," said Guardiola, whose team would go on to beat Manchester United at Wembley.
Their next meeting ended in a 2-2 draw in Barcelona. Mourinho poked Tito Vilanova, Guardiola's assistant, in the eye during a brawls which followed a ferocious tackle from Marcelo on Cesc Fabregas.
The Real Madrid manager was also seen making gestures towards Messi and Alves in their next meeting, after the 3-2 defeat, he criticised the hosts' "ball boys." "Someone has to take action on the matter. Mourinho is destroying Spanish football," said a furious Gerard Pique, the Barcelona defender.
Mourinho, though, was ready for war. "I'm not going to say we're happy because we didn't win the Spanish Super Cup, that would be hypocritical of me. But we intended to play like men and not fall on the ground at the slightest touch. I have been taught to play like a man and not to fall first."
However, Guardiola would once again get the better of Mourinho in the first league clash of the season, pulling level with their rivals at the top of La Liga after bouncing back from the quickest-ever Clasico goal from Karim Benzema to win 3-1.
A little over a month later Barcelona were victorious again at the Bernabeu, taking a 2-1 Copa del Rey first-leg lead back to the Nou Camp.
Pep's Barcelona drew 2-2 with José's men in the Copa del Rey second-leg match where they booked a semi-final spot in the competition they'd go on to win.
However, despite defeat to Barcelona in December, Real Madrid were proving an unstoppable force for all other comers in La Liga, winning 11 in a row after that Clasico loss. By the time they went to the Nou Camp in April, the title was in their hands - and Ronaldo hit the decisive strike in a 2-1 success against Barcelona to put Real seven points clear with four games remaining.
It was Barcelona's first home defeat in 55 games, Real's first Clasico win since 2008 and their first at the Nou Camp for five years. "We can't expect to always be up to the standard but it's a pity we faltered in the decisive moment," rued Guardiola. Mourinho declined to speak to the press.
Real went on to win all four remaining games to take the title for the first time in four years, finishing with a record 121 goals to their name and a nine-point advantage over Barcelona. As an illustration of how far clear Mourinho and Guardiola's men were of the rest, third-placed Valencia were 39 points off the season.
