Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho insists his relationship with Pep Guardiola will not turn ugly again

• e-mail

Jose Mourinho insists his bitter rivalry with Pep Guardiola is a thing of the past as the two men prepare for the Manchester derby in Houston.

A friendship fostered at Barcelona in the 1990s was ruined when Guardiola was given the coach’s job at the Nou Camp in 2008 ahead of Mourinho who then took over at Real Madrid.

They fell out spectacularly during Mourinho’s three-year stint in Spain, but the Manchester United boss believes it was stoked by the rivalry between the two clubs and will not re-surface in England.

Jose Mourinho insists his rivalry with Pep Guardiola has changed from their time in Spain

When Mourinho was Real Madrid boss, he had a frosty relationship with Guardiola at Barcelona

Now going head-to-head in Manchester, the duo have a new found respect for each other 

An anticipated clash between the two managers failed to materialise during three meetings between United and City during their first season in Manchester. Mourinho thinks that anybody expecting fireworks will be disappointed ahead of the International Champions Cup game at the NRG Stadium in Texas in the early hours of Friday.

‘It was a surprise for the people that were selling our rivalry,’ he said of last season. ‘We worked together for three years (at Barca). For three years we were laughing and smiling with victories and crying in defeat. We defended the same club and our relation was so good.

‘After that, he became Barca manager and I was Real Madrid manager in a very specific moment where one was the top team in Europe and the other was a giant in trouble. In a country like Spain, it became a fight between two clubs because of the difference and the competition.

‘When I came to England, I was absolutely sure with the type of competition we have that it was not about United-City, Mourinho-Pep. So I’m sorry if you’re disappointed.’

Mourinho insists that the first Manchester derby to be played on foreign soil – 12 months after their meeting in Beijing was scrapped due to the state of the pitch – is nothing more than a training exercise for him. He will not even celebrate if United score against their neighbours.

‘It’s nice for the US and US fans,’ added Mourinho. ‘It’s very good for the event that deserves everything from us because of the phenomenal preparations.

Mourinho is excited for United to play City in front of their American supporters 

Mourinho said despite United's rivalry with City, he stills views this encounter as a friendly 

‘I think it’s very good for both clubs and there is always a little bit of rivalry, a bit of an extra ingredient. But, for me, it’s a friendly. I’m not going to jump to celebrate a goal or cry if we concede. It’s preparation for me.

‘The European Super Cup (against Real Madrid) is a match, West Ham (in the first game of the season) is a match. But we feel a responsibility to the American people who love soccer and United fans.

‘We couldn’t play City in China but here the conditions are phenomenal, the organisation is phenomenal.’