Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff has claimed that the Catalan club president Sandro Rosell wanted Jose Mourinho and not Josep Guardiola to assume the club coach's role in 2008.

Cruyff, who played for Barcelona between 1973-78 and managed the club from 1988-96, is currently an advisor to the club and has rocked the football world with claims that back in 2008, during Joan Laporta reign as Barcelona president, his rival Rosell wanted to appoint current Real Madrid manager Mourinho as successor to Frank Rijkaard.

As things went though, youth team manager Guardiola was promoted to the first-team coach's role due to Cruyff's preference, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Mourinho became the coach of Barca's arch-rival Real Madrid in 2010, and since then the El Classicos have been particularly ugly and violent in nature.

The worst thing is that Mourinho was favoured to take the Barcelona job by Rosell, said Cruyff.

I told him at the time that Guardiola was the best choice for me.

Cruyff went on to criticise Mourinho for poking Barca's assitant coach's eye in a melee during the latest El Classico, saying it was act of arrogance and impotence and believes that it has proven him right for choosing Guardiola.

By his behaviour, the Portuguese has not just hurt himself, but also his players, added Cruyff.

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