My quality time with Guardiola - and getting his guide to Barcelona

"At Stoke, our ritual after home matches was always to invite the opposition's management staff into our room at the stadium. We would provide food from the same menu as the boardroom, plus a good measure of wine, for them to either celebrate a win or drown their sorrows if they had lost. I had always believed that providing good hospitality was important in such a cut-throat industry and a way of managers having a time to mix and meet."

"This was a tradition I had experienced all the way through the English football pyramid. Lower down, it was a bottle of beer and some left-over sandwiches, but that never stopped managers from always sharing these moments together. Once Stoke were promoted to the Premier League, we took this tradition further, by having hot food and a table which would accommodate the opposition staff and my staff together."

"Along my journey over my 30 years as a manager, I was made aware that this tradition was only really observed in the British Isles, and not in mainland Europe. The British managers would always come in after the game, but we made a point of inviting the foreign ones too - and they always joined in."

"I had been welcomed into Sir Alex Ferguson's room upstairs at Old Trafford many times when he was United's manager and it was the same when he retired. I remember having a glass of wine with Louis van Gaal when he was in charge, then going up to see Sir Alex, who had always been a manager who enjoyed our hospitality at the Britannia Stadium."

After the final whistle, opposition management staff were invited into the stadium room for shared food and wine to celebrate wins or commiserate losses. The practice was viewed as important in a competitive industry and as a way for managers to mix and meet. It existed throughout the English football pyramid, ranging from beer and leftover sandwiches to more elaborate Premier League hospitality with hot food and shared seating for both teams’ staff. Over a 30-year managerial journey, the tradition was recognized as largely British, with foreign managers also being invited and joining in. Experiences included hospitality at Old Trafford with Sir Alex Ferguson and shared wine with Louis van Gaal, reflecting a consistent approach among top managers.

Read at www.bbc.com