Tito Vilanova: A man who had Barcelona in his heart

Tito Vilanova

“A great football strategist. He’s hard-working, reserved and valiant, and has a direct, fluid relation with his players. He has a positive sense of human values. He has not only set an example for the sporting world, but for the world in general with his outstanding elegance. He’s a champion of sport and of life.”

Those were the words of Bayern Munich’s treble-winning coach Jupp Heynckes. He was talking about none other than Francesc ‘Tito’ Vilanova i Bayo.

Born in Catalonia and nicknamed ‘The Marquis’, Tito Vilanova came to La Masia as a 15-year-old in the 1984/85 season. And although he left in 1989, he had forged an everlasting friendship with a special someone called Pep Guardiola. Although both were just 14, the pair had a lot in common. Not only were they both technically gifted, they shared a philosophy- ‘the Barça way’- above all else.

Unlike Pep, who went onto play for the Dream Team, Vilanova had only managed to play for Barcelona B team. Whilst this would have marked the end for some, it wasn’t for the hard-working midfielder from a small Catalan village, who was determined to make his mark as a player. As a result, Vilanova left Barcelona in 1990 and went onto play for Figueres, Celta de Vigo, Badajoz, Mallorca, Elche and Gramenet. He might have left Barça, but the ethos of the club were imprinted on him forever.

Vilanova left Barça as a tall, lanky midfielder with exceptional skill and ability to read the game. He returned to the same club in 2002, as an analytical, hard-working and intuitive coach of the Barcelona’s Cadete B, a team of 13-year-olds that included Gerard Piqué, Cesc Fábregas and Lionel Messi.

When Guardiola was made coach of Barcelona’s B team in 2007, it was no surprise that he turned to his trusted friend first. For, few know Catalan football like him. Everybody who worked alongside him would bear testament to the footballing genius that was Tito Vilanova. Even those that didn’t, recognized his genius.

His commitment towards playing ‘the Barça way’ was evident wherever he was. And that was reflected in an interview he once gave Spanish newspaper El País: “We’re different. Winning alone is not enough: we have an ideal of youth team players and attacking football, as Barcelona’s culture demands. We have our faults but being cowards will never be one of them.”

And that is what separates the wheat from the chaff, the best from a bunch of ordinary people. Legendary actor Bill Cosby once said “Anyone can dabble, but once you’ve made that commitment, your blood has that particular thing in it, and it’s very hard for people to stop you.” And it is that commitment to Barcelona that saw him oversee the club’s most successful era alongside Guardiola.

But, it wasn’t a bed of roses by any stretch of the imagination, there were certainly some struggles along the way. The time when Vilanova was diagnosed with cancer of the parotid gland in the throat was a particular difficult one. One that not many would have come out of in their lifetime, but Vilanova did. The Spaniard came back to work in 18 days, saying that “my job is my whole life.” Such was his commitment to Barcelona, His club.

So, when the club was looking for someone to replace Guardiola, there was no better candidate than the man who had Barça in his heart. In the summer of 2012, after he had fully overcome the illness, Vilanova was officially the manager of His club.

In his tenure as manager, Barça rewrote the record books by claiming the championship with a total of 100 points out of a possible 114, whilst leading the table from the very first day. The Catalans also set a new goal scoring record with 115 goals in 38 games, an average of three goals a game. Having secured Barça’s 22th Liga, he also helped his side reach the semi-finals of both the Champions League and the Spanish Cup, narrowly missing out on both occasions.

While there were those who said that Vilanova wouldn’t cut it, wasn’t the right man to replace Guardiola, the Barcelona board knew. They knew what the rest of the world didn’t. For they knew that in Vilanova, the Catalans had perhaps, the greatest advocate of their style of play, a man who would give his blood, sweat and tears to the club he loved.

Unfortunately for him and for Barcelona, the happiness was short-lived. In December 2012, Vilanova suffered a relapse of his cancer. He had to undergo radiotherapy and chemotherapy during his tenure as Barcelona manager, before eventually being forced to leave the post last summer because of his deteriorating health. On Friday, aged just 45, Tito passed away.

Howard Thurman once said “Commitment means that it is possible for a man to yield the nerve center of his consent to a purpose or cause, a movement or an ideal, which may be more important to him than whether he lives or dies.” And that was precisely what Vilanova displayed right throughout his career. Whether he was in a hospital bed in New York or on the touchline in Nou Camp, his commitment to His club was there for all to see.

And whilst, there will be plenty of great footballers who put on the Blaugrana jersey, there will be none more committed than the man who gave his life to the club that he loved. For that alone, Vilanova will be eternally remembered by the Catalans. His commitment and desire to see his side play ‘the Barça way’ showed that even in the modern footballing world of commercialism and capitalism, there is still plenty of room for strong ideals.