War of words between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola in Nyon

The rivalry between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola’s is known to everyone.

During the UEFA elite managers meeting in Nyon, Switzerland, an argument is said to have broken between Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola and Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, Germany website TZ reports.

The rivalry between the two eccentric managers is something that is not unheard of, especially during their La Liga days when Guardiola was in charge of Barcelona, and MOurinho was managing arch-rivals Real Madrid.

According to the report, the argument was over the optimum length of grass on the pitch. As per as the current UEFA rule in article 13.07, for natural grass pitches, the height of the grass may not in principle exceed 30mm or 3cm, and the entire playing surface must be cut to the same height.

However, Guardiola insisted that changing it to 1.5cm would make football more fluid and pleasing to the eye, allowing players to pass it more easily.

Mourinho, on the other hand, wasn’t on the same page with his former Barcelona colleague. “Everyone has his style of play, which should be respected. Football can be spectacular in several ways,” he was quoted saying.

The argument was countered by Guardiola stating, “The beauty of football depends on the coach. It seems to me that the result matters more to Mourinho than the spectacle.”

What Guardiola was suggesting would definitely suit his style of football, but imposing his football policy on others and insulting Mourinho when he comes up with a sensible argument is somewhat immature from a manager of his stature.