(5) باب قَوْلِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم " لَوْ كُنْتُ مُتَّخِذًا خَلِيلاً " قَالَهُ أَبُو سَعِيدٍ
Narrated Aiyub:
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "If I were to take a Khalil, I would have taken him (i.e. Abu Bakr) as a Khalil, but the Islamic brotherhood is better." (IT)
Reference (IT): Sahih al-Bukhari 3657 (IT)
In-book reference (IT): Book 62, Hadith 9 (IT)
USC-MSA web (English) reference(deprecated numbering scheme): Vol. 5, Book 57, Hadith 9 (IT)