Sahih Muslim 6174
صحيح مسلم#6174Sahihحَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْمُثَنَّى، وَابْنُ، بَشَّارٍ قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ، حَدَّثَنِي سُفْيَانُ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ أَبِي الأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، ح وَحَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ بْنُ حُمَيْدٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا جَعْفَرُ بْنُ عَوْنٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو عُمَيْسٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي، مُلَيْكَةَ عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " لَوْ كُنْتُ مُتَّخِذًا خَلِيلاً لاَتَّخَذْتُ ابْنَ أَبِي قُحَافَةَ خَلِيلاً " .
Abdullah reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying:If I were to choose as my bosom friend I would have chosen the son of Abu Quhafa (Abu Bakr) as my bosom friend
Scholarly Authentication
The label above is the grade most of these scholars gave — one dissenting opinion no longer speaks for all of them. If any scholar calls a narration fabricated, that verdict is shown instead, whatever the others say. Each scholar's own wording:
Every narration in Sahih Muslim is accepted as Sahih (authentic) by the established status of the book.
In-book reference: 44:6