#1 Tito Vilanova loses the fight against Cancer
Tito Vilanova’s fight against cancer hung like a dark cloud over Barcelona in his one season in charge of the club.
Pep’s heir as the Blaugrana’s boss, Tito had a great start to what promised to be a long and successful managerial career. In his first season in charge, he led Barca to the league title, equaling Real Madrid’s record tally of 100 points and losing only 2 games.
However, during the middle of the season, in December 2012, Tito was diagnosed with Parotid gland cancer, for the second time. Whilst he was undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy, Jordi Roura took the reins of the first team.
Tito managed to return to the dugout in March 2013 but eventually resigned from his position in July due to a relapse as his treatment meant he wasn’t able to fully focus on his job.
To everyone’s disbelief, he passed away on April 25, 2014, at the age of 45. The players and everyone at the Camp Nou paid tribute to their former manager, while Pep Guardiola looked to be a broken man at Bayern Munich. Tito was his best friend and his death had hit him the hardest.
