A new phase in the dispute between José Mourinho and Pep Guardiola emerged publicly on Tuesday, August 10, 2026. In an interview for the documentary The Special One, on Netflix, Mourinho, current coach of Real Madrid, criticized his Catalan colleague for his choices of career breaks.
Mourinho’s provocation comes against the backdrop of Guardiola’s history, who already took a year off after leaving Barcelona, before taking over Bayern Munich in 2013. Recently, Guardiola expressed his desire for a new break after a decade at the helm of Manchester City, something that the Portuguese coach categorically rules out for himself.
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“I can’t even imagine when I’ll stop being involved in football. I say another ten years, but maybe more than ten. It’s fun. I want to win more titles. I want to do it in places I’ve never been and I want to do it in places I’ve already won,” said Mourinho about his future in the sport.
He further added: “My world is walking into a football stadium with 50,000 or 90,000 fans. I’ve had 100,000. That’s my world. Without football, I feel like something is missing. But I don’t think it’s an obsession. I don’t feel like it’s an obsession. When you reach a certain level, you just want to stay there forever.”
For Mourinho, the need to step away from football for periods of rest reveals a vulnerability in a coach’s mentality, a perspective that sets him apart from other big names in the field.
The Portuguese was emphatic: “Some guys need a sabbatical, something I hate. I hate that word. For me, a sabbatical means weakness. Don’t talk to me about sabbaticals. I never need to rest. I’ll rest when I die.”
The intense rivalry between Mourinho and Guardiola was consolidated throughout their careers, marked by epic clashes when they led Real Madrid and Barcelona. Subsequently, the dispute extended to the Premier League, with Mourinho in charge of Manchester United and Guardiola in charge of City, in a history full of declarations and duels.