Former Barcelona marketing chief Marc Ingla has revealed they tried to sign Jose Mourinho last season.

Ingla broke his silence yesterday, admitting: "In November 2007, with Txiki (Begiristain) we saw that the team needed a change on the bench and several players - and losing against Real Madrid accelerated things.

"We met with Mourinho, who is a phenomenon and had been a great coach for the club, but the option of (Pep) Guardiola was always considered a serious alternative."

On Ronaldinho, who left Barca for AC Milan in the summer, Ingla added: "We were unhappy with Ronaldinho and it was difficult because he was a leader without acting like one and was damaging the squad."