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Jose and Pep: How two friends became enemies

Often, the Clasicos witnessed ugly tussles between players and uglier touchline battles including the one in which Mourinho infamously poked Tito Vilanova in the eye

They were once the best of friends. Now Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola rarely exchange pleasantries.
Their every move will now be monitored when their new teams - Manchester United and Manchester City - play their first derby of the season on Saturday in the Premier League.
Their's is obviously a storied rivalry. It was indeed the stuff of dreams for football writers in Europe after Real Madrid hired the self proclaimed Special One in 2010 to end the dominance of Guardiola's Barcelona. But they were in for a surprise as the clashes between the two Spanish giants didn't always produce pretty football. 
Often, the Clasicos witnessed ugly tussles between players and uglier touchline battles including the one in which Mourinho infamously poked Tito Vilanova in the eye.
"In this room (the Bernabeu press room) Mourinho is the chief, the boss. He knows all about this and I don't want to compete with him in here," a frustrated Guardiola told reporters after repeated attacks from Mourinho before their 2011 Champions League clash.
Remarkably, there was a time when Mourinho and Guardiola were the best of friends.   
They would share knowledge on tactics and strategies long after the last ball was kicked in training sessions at Camp Nou. 
Guardiola, the blue-eyed boy of former Barcelona coach Johan Cruyff, was the fulcrum of Bobby Robson's team. 
He was their star playmaker.

And Mourinho was Robson's translator. Yes, it's pretty unbelievable but that's exactly how the Portuguese began his journey in football.
Mourinho was also a dressing room favourite. For someone with a modest record as a footballer, Mourinho impressed everyone in Barcelona with his tactical nuances. And he was quick to struck a chord with Guardiola. 
They all realised that Mourinho wasn't born to be a mere translator. Barcelona made him the assistant manager after Louis van Gaal took charge of the Catalan club. But Mourinho was too ambitious to continue as an assistant manager and soon began his own coaching career in Portugal. 
The Champions League title with Porto landed him the job at Chelsea in 2004. And thus 'The Special One' arrived in England. In style. 
Guardiola, on the other hand, was left out in the cold after having lost his place in the Barcelona team due to injuries in 2001. After failing to reinvent himself as a player in Serie A, the fiercely proud Catalan returned to Barcelona as a coach, taking charge of their B team in 2007. A year later, the former Spain midfielder famously got the chance to manage Barcelona first team - a club he played for with such distinction.
But it was a job Mourinho wanted desperately. His biggest dream in life was to return as the head coach to Barcelona - a club where he had worked as a translator. 
But the Catalans decided to replace Frank Rijkaard with Guardiola. And many in Spain believe that is the reason why their friendship turned sour.
Now obviously, they would be at the opposite ends of the battle ground in Manchester in what has now become the biggest derby in English club football.
Guardiola, of course, left Barcelona after Mourinho's tough-tackling, counter-attacking Real Madrid ended their La Liga dominance in 2012. Many saw it as a sign of weakness in Guardiola's character.
Now it's going to be a season full of verbal onslaughts from Mourinho in a country where he became a global star. The Portuguese also smartly hired Zlatan Ibrahimovic - a man who never got along with Guardiola during his time at Barcelona. The flamboyant Swede even called the Spaniard a 'spineless coward' in his book.
So far Guardiola has shown he has the guts to remove some very big-names at Man City - Yaya Toure has been dropped from the Champions League squad while Samir Nasri and Joe Hart have been forced to accept loan moves to Sevilla and Torino respectively. 
The mild-mannered Guardiola has just proved that he can make bold statements without resorting to name-calling. 
But he will have to deal with an old friend who now loves to infuriate him.