Pep Guardiola (left), Jose Mourinho (right)(credit:
Wikipedia)
Real Madrid and Barcelona renew their rivalry in Wednesday night’s Copa del Rey final, which you can watch live at 365.
And ahead of their showdown at the Mestalla, Football News are taking a look at the two managers who have both enjoyed much success in their careers already, Jose Mourinho and Josep ‘Pep’ Guardiola.
JOSE MOURINHO, REAL MADRID
Date of birth: January 26, 1963
Nationality: Portuguese
Coaching career: Benfica, Leiria, FC Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid
- A former teacher, Mourinho had spells working at Sporting, Porto and Barcelona as a coaching assistant in the 1990s.
- As coach, had a nine-game spell at Benfica and a highly successful tenure at Leiria before getting his big break with Porto in January 2002. In his first full season, 2002/03, Porto won the UEFA Cup and a domestic double. The next year they retained their league title and claimed the UEFA Champions League with a 3-0 defeat of AS Monaco FC in Gelsenkirchen.
- Joined Chelsea in 2004 and led the club to their first league championship for 50 years and the League Cup in his first season. Followed up with the league title again in 2006, and both the League Cup and FA Cup in 2007.
- Left Chelsea in September 2007 and stayed out of football until joining Inter in June 2008. In his first campaign the Nerazzurri retained their Serie A crown, a feat they repeated in 2009/10 when they also added the Coppa Italia and the UEFA Champions League title, their first European Champion Clubs' Cup win since 1965. Victory at the Santiago Bernabeu was Mourinho's last act as Inter coach before joining Madrid on a four-year deal.
JOSEP 'PEP' GUARDIOLA, BARCELONA
Date of birth: January 18, 1971
Nationality: Spanish
Playing career: Barcelona, Brescia (twice), Roma, Al-Ahly Club, Dorados de Sinaloa
Coaching career: Barcelona B, Barcelona
- Known as 'Pep', he came up through Barcelona's youth ranks to win six Spanish Liga titles, one European Champion Clubs' Cup, a UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and two Copa del Rey trophies from 1990 to 2001. Also had spells with Brescia, Fabio Capello's Roma, Al-Ahly in Doha and Mexico's Dorados de Sinola before ending his playing career in 2006.
- Won 40 caps and Olympic footballing gold with Spain in 1992, but missed the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup tournaments through injury.
- Having coached Barcelona's B team, became the 15th Catalan-born boss of the senior team in 2008 and won the UEFA Champions League, Spanish Liga and Copa del Rey in his first season in charge.
- Success in the 2008/09 final made Guardiola the sixth man to lift the European Cup as a player and a coach. Barcelona followed up with victories in the Spanish and UEFA Super Cups at the start of 2009/10, going on to win the FIFA Club World Cup and retain the Liga title.
For more from our special "El Clasico" section, please click here.