Jose Mourinho almost became Barcelona manager before Joan Laporta stepped in – report

Jose Mourinho almost became Barcelona manager before Joan Laporta stepped in – report Jose Mourinho’s history with Barcelona could have been dramatically different. Long before becoming one of the club’s fiercest rivals during his time at Real Madrid, the Portuguese coach came remarkably close to taking charge at Camp Nou.  The story dates back to 2008 when Barcelona were searching for a successor to Frank Rijkaard, and Mourinho emerged as the leading candidate during the club’s internal selection process. According to journalist Xavi Torres, speaking on RAC1 , Mourinho actually received the strongest backing in the board’s first vote.  Pep Guardiola, the man who would eventually lead Barça into one of the most successful periods in their history, did not receive a single vote at that stage. So, the decision ultimately went in a very different direction. Mourinho won Barcelona’s first internal vote Barcelona’s search for Rijkaard’s replacement eventually brought the club into direct contact with Mourinho. Torres revealed that Barcelona representatives travelled to Galicia to meet the Portuguese coach.  Marc Ingla, a former Vice Chairman, attended the meeting, while Txiki Begiristain, a former director of football, was also expected to be there but failed to make it due to logistical issues. Once the project returned to the boardroom, the candidates were put to a vote. Joan Laporta intervened to appoint Pep Guardiola as Barcelona’s new manager. (Photo credit should read OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)  “On the day of the vote, Mourinho won by a landslide. Pellegrini, who was at Villarreal and having a great season, secured three votes. And Pep Guardiola didn’t get a single vote,” the journalist explained. On paper, Mourinho appeared to have won the first major battle, but the final decision was not going to be determined solely by that vote. Joan Laporta ultimately listened to Johan Cruyff and Begiristain, both of whom pushed Guardiola’s candidacy. The president subsequently made his choice. “President Laporta said: ‘Well, we’ll go with Guardiola because Johan tells me to and Txiki tells me to, and that’s that’.” Ultimately, that decision changed Barcelona’s history. Mourinho desperately wanted the Barcelona job The story becomes even more intriguing because Mourinho was not just another candidate among several. According to Torres, the Portuguese was extremely keen on returning to Barcelona, having previously worked at the club as an assistant and interpreter under Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal. “He tried everything to come to Barça and asked me to put in a good word, to speak to whoever was necessary, because he was really looking forward to it: it was his moment.” Instead of returning to Barcelona, he would go on to establish himself at Inter Milan before eventually taking charge of Real Madrid . His career then became closely intertwined with Barça’s during the Guardiola era, creating one of the most intense rivalries in modern football. What would Mourinho’s Barcelona have looked like? Mourinho ultimately carved his own path (Photo credit: DANI POZO/AFP via Getty Images) The most fascinating part of Torres’ account is his belief that Mourinho’s appointment would not necessarily have produced the radical stylistic shift many might assume. Torres argues that Mourinho understood Barcelona’s footballing identity after his time at the club and would have retained elements of that philosophy. “I’m convinced that if that Mourinho had come to Barça the team wouldn’t have played like Guardiola’s, but they would have played good football,” he said. He added that Mourinho “had in mind the way Barça played” , to the point that “he came to understand and embrace it.” The key difference, according to Torres, would have been Mourinho’s ability to communicate that philosophy on the pitch. “It’s another matter that he didn’t have the ability to convey it in the same way as Pep.” Summing up, Torres goes even further when imagining the alternative history, stating, “I am convinced that a Barça side managed by Mourinho would have played much better than we have subsequently seen in teams managed by Mourinho.” It is impossible to know how that Barcelona would have evolved if Mourinho had taken charge.  However, what is certain is that Guardiola’s appointment changed the club forever, while Mourinho’s near-move created an alternate path that could have rewritten one of football’s greatest modern rivalries.