Cruyff: When playing a sport, you must laugh and joke......

Alove of football transcends even the fiercest of rivalries, with Johan Cruyffand Jorge Valdano having gotten together for a chat about the beautiful game right before the Dutchman's death, a sharing of each of their views during the filiming of a movie being made about Lionel Messi.

After the scene was filmed, a lot of extra material remained, so director Alex de la Iglesia and company Mediapro released the rest for a separate documentary celebrating the life of the Dutch icon.

"It's horrible not to laugh when playing a sport," Cruyff said. "A day that goes by that you haven't laughed is a day that's been wasted.

"The penalty kick with Jesper Olsen started off as a joke."

While Valdano and Cruyff eventually became good friends, their relationship got off to a rocky start in 1974 when the Argentine was still playing for Alaves.

"Johan [Cruyff] was the one that controlled the game, even ahead of the referee," Valdano said.

With the ball at his feet during an injury, a young Valdano asked Cruyff why wouldn't he let the ball go, to which the Dutch star replied by cooly asking what his age was.

"At 19, you must refer to me by using a term of respect (the Spanish usted)," Johan responded.

Known for his ideological approach to the game, and his lasting influence as a player and coach, the ex-Barcelona man would always look towards a unique solution to any type of problem that could come up on the pitch.

"You have to think differently," he said. "The problem with football today is that those in charge don't know how to balance a squad."

The comparisons between players always bored Cruyff, refusing to comment on whether Lionel Messi is better than Diego Maradona, or if he is better than Cristiano Ronaldo.

"The styles and qualities are the exact opposite and you can't compare them," Cruyff stated when asked about the current Barcelona No. 10.

No detail, no matter how small, would escape the observations of the Blaugrana legend.

"The reason Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Messi were so successful together was because they are all the same height and their eyes meet at the same level," he explained.

"You think I'm kidding, but those details do matter and make the difference."