Eighteen years on, Marc Ingla still keeps a white USB stick in a desk drawer as a reminder of the meeting that could have changed Barcelona’s history.
The storage device was handed to him by Jose Mourinho in Lisbon in the spring of 2008, when the Portuguese was among the leading candidates to replace Frank Rijkaard as Barcelona manager.
According to Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona were looking for a radical change after a period of complacency. They were expected to finish a second successive season without a trophy, while Mourinho was available after leaving Chelsea unexpectedly at the start of the campaign.
Mourinho had already enjoyed successful spells with Porto and Chelsea, and his influential agent Jorge Mendes knew the coach and his family wanted to return to Barcelona. Mourinho had spent four satisfying years in the city as an assistant to Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal.
Mendes arranged a meeting at the Gestifute offices in the Portuguese capital. Ingla, Barcelona’s vice-president for sporting affairs at the time, attended alone after sporting director Txiki Begiristain withdrew the previous day because of an unpostponable personal commitment.
Begiristain, a former member of Barcelona’s Dream Team, was not especially enthusiastic about Mourinho’s candidacy. His preferred choice was Pep Guardiola, who had only just begun coaching Barcelona’s reserve team.
After the initial greetings, Mourinho produced the USB stick from his pocket. It contained a detailed 27-page presentation setting out how he would run Barcelona.
The plan retained the 4-3-3 formation, including its various tactical developments, as a system that could not be abandoned. It also insisted that the ball should be used in every training session, including physical conditioning, echoing the approach associated with Johan Cruyff, despite Mourinho’s poor relationship with the Dutchman.
Mourinho also carried out an extensive assessment of the squad. He questioned whether Ronaldinho could remain while favouring the retention of Samuel Eto’o and Deco. Sylvinho, Lilian Thuram and Javier Ezquerro were identified as players who could leave, while the roles of Edmilson, Oleguer and Gianluca Zambrotta were also questioned.
The presentation did not include a list of potential signings. Mourinho did, however, suggest bringing former Barcelona players into his coaching staff, including Luis Enrique, Xavi Ferrer and Sergi Barjuan, all of whom he had worked with during his previous time at the club.
The most difficult part of the discussion concerned Mourinho’s relationship with the media. He was told he would need to improve his dealings with journalists after the clashes surrounding Chelsea’s recent Champions League knockout matches against Barcelona, during which he had shown some of his worst traits.
Rijkaard’s fate had already been sealed by the poor end to the season. He had guided Barcelona to two La Liga titles and one Champions League trophy, but the team finished well behind Bernd Schuster’s Real Madrid and formed a guard of honour for the champions at Santiago Bernabeu. They were also eliminated by Manchester United in the Champions League semi-finals.
When the time came to appoint Rijkaard’s successor, Joan Laporta again followed Cruyff’s advice and backed Begiristain’s preference for Guardiola.
Barcelona’s greatest side then began to take shape as Lionel Messi emerged. Mourinho, angered by the rejection, became the Catalan club’s foremost enemy.
