Paolo Cesare Maldini (lahir 26 Juni 1968) adalah mantan pemain sepak bola profesional Italia yang bermain terutama sebagai bek kiri dan bek tengah untuk AC Milan dan tim nasional Italia. Ia menghabiskan seluruh kariernya di Serie A selama 25 tahun bersama AC Milan sebelum pensiun pada umur 41 pada tahun 2009. Dia secara luas dianggap sebagai salah satu bek terhebat sepanjang masa. Sebagai kapten Milan dan Italia selama bertahun-tahun ia dijuluki "Il Capitano". Maldini memegang rekor penampilan terbanyak di Serie A, dengan 647 penampilan (sampai tahun 2020, ketika ia diambil alih oleh Gianluigi Buffon) dan memegang rekor penampilan terbanyak di final Liga Champions UEFA (8) bersama Paco Gento.
Maldini melakukan debut untuk Italia pada tahun 1988, bermain selama 14 tahun sebelum pensiun pada tahun 2002 dengan 7 gol dan 126 caps, sebuah rekor penampilan pada saat itu, yang kemudian dilampaui oleh Fabio Cannavaro dan Gianluigi Buffon. Maldini menjadi kapten Italia selama delapan tahun dan memegang rekor penampilan sebagai kapten Italia (75), hingga kembali disusul oleh Cannavaro dan Buffon. Bersama Italia, Maldini mengambil bagian dalam empat Piala Dunia FIFA dan tiga Kejuaraan Eropa UEFA. Meskipun ia tidak memenangkan turnamen bersama Italia, ia mencapai final Piala Dunia 1994 dan Euro 2000, dan semifinal Piala Dunia 1990 dan Euro 1988. Dia terpilih menjadi tim all-star untuk setiap turnamen ini, selain Euro 1996.
Maldini berada di urutan kedua setelah George Weah untuk Pemain Terbaik Dunia FIFA Tahun 1995. Dia juga menempati posisi ketiga di Ballon d'Or pada tahun 1994 dan 2003. Pada tahun 2002, ia terpilih sebagai bek di FIFA World Cup Dream Team, dan pada tahun 2004 Pelé memasukkannya ke dalam daftar pemain terhebat FIFA 100 yang masih hidup di dunia. Dia menduduki peringkat ke-21 dalam daftar 100 pemain terhebat abad ke-20 versi majalah World Soccer. Ia juga terpilih masuk dalam Ballon d'Or Dream Team pada tahun 2020. Maldini memegang rekor penampilan terbanyak di kompetisi klub UEFA, dengan 174, hingga ia disusul oleh Iker Casillas pada tahun 2017. Dia adalah pemegang rekor penampilan untuk Milan dengan 902 penampilan di semua kompetisi, dan merupakan salah satu dari sedikit pemain yang membuat lebih dari 1.000 penampilan dalam kariernya. Pada bulan Desember 2012, ia dilantik menjadi anggota Italian Football Hall of Fame.
Maldini lahir pada 26 Juni 1968 di Milan dari pasangan Cesare Maldini dan Maria Luisa De Mezzi. Ia telah menikah dengan mantan model Venezuela Adriana Fossa sejak Desember 1994. Pasangan ini memiliki dua putra, Christian (lahir 14 Juni 1996) dan Daniel (lahir 11 Oktober 2001), yang keduanya telah dikontrak oleh mantan klub Maldini, Milan, dan bermain di tim yunior. Ayahnya Cesare juga seorang pesepakbola yang juga bermain sebagai bek, menjadi kapten Milan, dan mewakili tim nasional Italia, kemudian menjadi pelatih. Sepanjang karir manajerial Cesare, ia melatih putranya di tim Italia U-21 dan tim senior, serta di Milan, juga mengelola beberapa tim lainnya. Pada 3 April 2016, ayah Paolo, Cesare, meninggal pada usia 84 tahun, ibunya meninggal akhir tahun itu, pada 28 Juli.
Maldini memiliki label fesyennya sendiri – Sweet Years – yang dijalankannya bersama teman dan mantan rekan setimnya di Italia dan Milan, Christian Vieri.
Pada tahun 1978, pada usia 10 tahun, Maldini mengikuti uji coba pertamanya untuk akademi muda AC Milan. Sebelumnya, ia hanya bermain sepak bola jalanan. Ia berhasil memainkan permainan uji coba sebagai gelandang kanan atau pemain sayap dalam formasi 4–4–2 dan diterima dalam skuad kelompok usianya. Ia terus bermain di posisi ini hingga usia 14 tahun, ketika ia dipindahkan ke bek kanan. Karena ia pandai menguasai bola dengan kedua kakinya, ia terkadang juga dimainkan di sisi kiri.
Maldini memenangkan Coppa Italia Primavera dengan tim Milan Youth selama musim 1984-85, dan ia membuat debut liga untuk Milan di bawah manajer Nils Liedholm selama musim yang sama pada 20 Januari 1985, menggantikan Sergio Battistini yang cedera dalam pertandingan melawan Udinese pada usia 16 tahun. Itu adalah satu-satunya penampilan liga-nya musim itu, tetapi ia langsung menjadi anggota starting eleven musim berikutnya, pada usia 17 tahun, di bek kanan, diberi nomor punggung 3, yang sebelumnya juga milik ayahnya, Cesare. Maldini juga membuat debut Coppa Italia pada tahun 1985, pada 21 Agustus, sementara debutnya di kompetisi Eropa juga datang kemudian pada tahun yang sama, pada 18 September. Ia mencetak gol pertama dari 29 golnya di Serie A pada 4 Januari 1987 dalam kemenangan 1-0 melawan Como.
1987–1991: Kesuksesan domestik dan internasional dengan The Immortals
Scudetto 1987–88 di bawah asuhan Arrigo Sacchi menandai trofi pertama Maldini, dan yang pertama dari tujuh gelar liga, bersama klub tersebut. Dijuluki "The Immortals", tim Milan asuhan Sacchi dikenang karena menyertakan trio Belanda Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit dan Marco van Basten, serta gelandang Italia Carlo Ancelotti, Roberto Donadoni (dan kemudian Demetrio Albertini), dan barisan pertahanan yang kuat. Di bawah Sacchi dan kemudian Fabio Capello, Maldini membentuk formasi dengan pemain lama Franco Baresi, Alessandro Costacurta, Mauro Tassotti, serta Filippo Galli, Stefano Nava dan kemudian Christian Panucci, salah satu kuartet pertahanan terkuat sepanjang masa. Selama musim Serie A 1987–88, Milan hanya kebobolan 14 gol, berakhir dengan pertahanan terbaik di Italia, saat mereka terus memenangkan gelar Serie A. Maldini kemudian memenangkan Piala Super Italia 1988 bersama Milan pada musim berikutnya, dan mengikuti trofi ini dengan gelar piala Liga Champions berturut-turut pada 1988–89 dan 1989–90, sementara Milan finis di posisi ketiga dan kedua di Serie A selama musim masing-masing. Pada 19 Februari 1989, Maldini membuat penampilan ke-100 di Serie A.
Milan mencapai final Piala Italia 1989-90, kalah dari Juventus. Milan juga berhasil merebut gelar Piala Super UEFA berturut-turut pada 1989 dan 1990, serta gelar Piala Interkontinental berturut-turut, sekali lagi 1989 dan 1990. Musim berikutnya, pada musim terakhir Sacchi bersama klub, Milan tersingkir di perempat final Liga Champions UEFA oleh finalis Marseille, dan finis kedua di Serie A, di belakang Sampdoria, sekali lagi dengan pertahanan terbaik di liga, hanya kebobolan 19 gol. Milan mencapai semifinal Piala Italia, kalah dari juara akhirnya AS Roma. Pada tahun 1989, Maldini dianugerahi Bravo Award, sebagai pemain U-23 terbaik di Kompetisi Eropa.[1][2]
Under Sacchi's replacement, Fabio Capello, Milan continued to be a dominant force in Italy and in Europe. Maldini was also part of Milan's undefeated Serie A team, which won the championship in the 1991–92 season; in total, Milan went unbeaten for an Italian record of 58 league matches, earning the nickname "The Invincibles".[3] This championship was Milan's first of three consecutive Serie A titles under Capello in the early 1990s. Maldini helped Milan defend the Serie A title the following season, and reach the first of three consecutive UEFA Champions League finals. Milan lost the 1993 Champions League final in a 1–0 defeat to Marseille. That season, Maldini scored his first goal in European Competitions on 21 October 1992 in a 1–0 Champions League win against Slovan Bratislava,[1] and also made his 200th appearance in Serie A on 4 October of the same year.[4] The following season, Milan captured their third consecutive Serie A title, finishing with the best defence in Italy, conceding just 15 goals. Maldini also helped lead Milan to a second consecutive Champions League final, where he helped his team defeat Barcelona. Due to Alessandro Costacurta's suspension and injuries sustained to Franco Baresi, Jean-Pierre Papin and Marco van Basten, Barcelona's "Dream Team", coached by Johan Cruyff, were heavy favourites to win the trophy, with the formidable attacking duo of Romário and Hristo Stoichkov.[5] Despite their key absences, Maldini helped the Milan defence keep a clean sheet and overcome Barcelona 4–0 in the final, with two goals from Daniele Massaro and one each from Dejan Savićević and Marcel Desailly.[1][2][5]
After winning his third Champions League title and reaching the 1994 World Cup final, Maldini became the first defender ever to win World Soccer magazine's annual World Player of the Year Award. During his acceptance speech, Maldini called his milestone "a particular matter of pride because defenders generally receive so much less attention from fans and the media than goalscorers. We are more in the engine room rather than taking the glory".[6] He then singled out Milan captain Franco Baresi as a player who "really [deserved] to receive the sort of award I have received".[6] Maldini also placed third in the 1994 Ballon d'Or, behind Stoichkov and compatriot Roberto Baggio, and fifth in the FIFA World Player of the Year Award.[1][2]
The following season, Milan and Maldini captured their third consecutive Supercoppa Italiana under Capello, and won the European Super Cup, missing out on the Intercontinental Cup. After three consecutive titles, Milan were unable to retain their Serie A title, although they reached their third consecutive Champions League final, where they were defeated 1–0 by Ajax. Maldini came second behind future teammate George Weah in the 1995 FIFA World Player of the Year Award for his performances. On 17 February 1995, he made his 300th appearance in Serie A.[4] Maldini was able to capture his fifth Serie A title, and his fourth under Capello, the following season.[1][2]
1996–2001: Assuming the captaincy, struggles, and 1999 Serie A title
Following Capello's departure, and the aging and retirement of several key players, Milan suffered disappointing results during the next few seasons, undergoing several managerial changes. Milan lost the Supercoppa Italiana to Fiorentina in 1996, and failed to qualify for European competitions for two consecutive seasons, as well as suffering a group stage elimination in the 1996–97 Champions League. Following Franco Baresi's and Mauro Tassotti's retirement after the 1996–97 season, Maldini was appointed Milan's captain. Despite the difficulties Milan encountered during this period, through Maldini's leadership, they reached the Coppa Italia final in 1998, losing to Lazio, and won the 1998–99 Serie A title under Alberto Zaccheroni, finishing one point ahead of Lazio. He made his 400th Serie A appearance on 25 April 1999.[4] In the 1999–2000 season, Milan lost the Supercoppa Italiana against Parma, finished third in Serie A and finished bottom of their Champions League group. Milan were eliminated in the second round of the Champions League the next season and finished in sixth place in Serie A, failing to qualify for the Champions League, and participated in the UEFA Cup the following season.[1][2]
Milan again became a dominant force in Italy and in Europe under Carlo Ancelotti. In the 2001–02 season, Milan finished in fourth place, qualifying for the Champions League, and also reached their best ever finish in the UEFA Cup, losing in the semi-finals. In 2002, Maldini was awarded the Premio Nazionale Carriera Esemplare "Gaetano Scirea", for his career achievements and personality.[7] The following season, Maldini lined up with Alessandro Nesta, Alessandro Costacurta and Cafu, who, along with Jaap Stam during the 2004–05 season, formed a formidable defensive lineup in Italy and in Europe. Milan finished third in Serie A, but Maldini won the first Coppa Italia of his career, defeating Roma in the final.[1][2] On 15 March 2003, he made his 500th appearance in Serie A.[4]
Milan won the 2002–03 Champions League with Maldini as their captain for the first time in his career, in the first all-Italian final, against Juventus, on 28 May 2003 at Old Trafford. Maldini helped Milan keep a clean sheet, as they defeated Juventus 3–2 on penalties after a 0–0 deadlock following extra time. On that day, it was exactly 40 years since his father, Cesare, had also lifted the European Cup trophy as Milan's captain, also in England.[8] He and his father are only one of three other father-son pairs to have also done so; the others being Manuel and Manolo Sanchís of Real Madrid, and Carles and Sergio Busquets of Barcelona. Maldini was elected Man of the Match and was named in the UEFA Team of the Year for the first time in his career.[1][2]
The following season, Milan were defeated by Juventus on penalties in the Supercoppa Italiana, and in the Intercontinental Cup final by Boca Juniors, once again on penalties, but managed to defeat Porto to capture yet another UEFA Super Cup. Maldini placed third in the 2003 Ballon d'Or for the second time in his career. Maldini went on to captain Milan to win the Serie A title that season, with a record 82 points, whilst Milan were eliminated in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia by Lazio, and in the quarter-finals of the Champions League by Deportivo de La Coruña. In April 2004, Maldini placed tenth on the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll, an online UEFA survey, which was organised to commemorate the best European footballers of the past 50 years. Maldini was the second-highest placed Italian after Dino Zoff.[9] Maldini was also included in the FIFA 100 list in 2004, which was a selection of the 125 greatest living footballers, chosen by Pelé. Following his Series A-winning performances, Maldini was elected to be the Serie A Defender of the Year in 2004 at the Italian footballing Awards.[1][2]
Maldini celebrating the 2007 UEFA Champions League triumph with his Milan teammates. At 38, he was the oldest captain to lift the trophy.
Maldini began the next season by lifting the 2004 Supercoppa Italiana as captain after Milan defeated Lazio. Milan finished second in Serie A to Juventus that season, and reached the Champions League final, only to lose out on penalties to Liverpool, although Maldini opened the scoring in the first minute. In 2005, Maldini was elected to be a part of the UEFA Team of the Year for the second time in his career, and was also elected to be the part of the FIFPro World XI for the first time in his career. The following season, Milan finished second behind Juventus in Serie A once again, and reached the Champions League semi-finals, only to be defeated by eventual champions Barcelona. Both Juventus and Milan were later deducted points for being involved in the 2006 "Calciopoli" matchfixing scandal, and the title was awarded to Internazionale, while Juventus were relegated, with Milan finishing in third place after the point deduction. During the season, Maldini scored his first and only double of his career, against Reggina. On 25 September 2005, Maldini broke Dino Zoff's Serie A appearance record after playing his 571st league match against Treviso;[10] seven days earlier, he had played his 800th game in all competitions for Milan.[1][2]
The following season, Maldini helped to captain Milan to a fourth-place finish, despite their point deduction, leading them to obtain a crucial Champions League qualifying spot. Maldini played his 600th Serie A match on 13 May 2007 in a 1–1 draw at Catania.[11] That season, Maldini captained Milan to their third Champions League final in six years, leading them to a 2–1 victory over Liverpool in the final on 23 May 2007 in Athens, avenging their defeat from 2005. At age 38, Maldini became the oldest captain to lift the Champions League trophy.[12] Maldini participated in eight Champions League finals during his career, which is equalled only by Francisco Gento of Real Madrid; Maldini lifted the trophy five times, twice as captain. In an interview with ESPN aired prior to the 2007 final, Maldini labeled the 2005 Champions League final as the worst moment of his career. A match where he scored the fastest-ever goal in a European Cup final after 51 seconds and became the oldest player ever to score in a final, Milan lost on penalties to Liverpool after leading 3–0 at half-time. Maldini was elected the UEFA Club Defender of the Year for his 2007 performances.[1][2]
In 2007, after Milan won the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla (although Maldini did not appear in the match), Maldini became the first European captain to lift the FIFA Club World Cup after defeating Boca Juniors on 16 December. He announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2007–08 season, saying that he would do so with "no regrets".[13] Following Milan's elimination from the Champions League by Arsenal in March, however, Maldini stated that he would possibly delay his retirement for at least a further year.[14] He signed an extension on 6 June that kept him at Milan for the 2008–09 season.[15]
On 16 February 2008, in a match against Parma at the Stadio Ennio Tardini, Maldini came on for defender Marek Jankulovski to make his 1,000th professional career appearance,[16][17] of which 861 were with Milan, 12 with the Italy under-21 side, 1 with the Italian Olympic team and 126 with the Italy senior team.[18] In European football, only the English goalkeeper Peter Shilton had collected more appearances at the time: 1,390 between 1966 and 1997. Maldini played his last game in the Champions League on 4 March 2008, a 2–0 loss at the San Siro in the last 16 against Arsenal which eliminated Milan from the 2007–08 Champions League. In 2008, Maldini was awarded the FIFA Order of Merit, as well as the Premio Internazionale Giacinto Facchetti, which is awarded to a player who was demonstrated both skill and fair play throughout his career.[2][19]
On 18 April 2009, Maldini announced that he would retire at the end of the 2008–09 season.[1][2] On 17 May 2009, in the Stadio Friuli, Maldini played his 900th official match for Milan in a league game against Udinese. Maldini's last match in San Siro was on 24 May, a 3–2 loss against Roma, and was given a standing ovation by the fans. There was a small controversy, however, when the Milan Ultras fans known as Brigate Rossonere protested against Maldini as he said goodbye.[20][21] His last appearance for Milan, and his last game as an active player, was a 2–0 win against Fiorentina on 31 May 2009 in the last match of the Serie A season. This win meant Milan finished in third place and qualified for the following season's Champions League. Maldini was once again given a standing ovation by the fans. As they had previously done with Franco Baresi's number 6 shirt, Milan retired Maldini's number 3 shirt, but stated that it will be bequeathed to one of his sons if one of them were to make the club's senior team.[2][22][23]
On 28 August 2009 in Monte Carlo, Maldini was awarded a prize for his career by UEFA during the draw for the group stage of the 2009–10 Champions League.[24] On 17 November 2009, Spanish sports newspaper Marca awarded Maldini the "Marca Leyenda" prize for his career and achievements.[25][26]
Maldini telah muncul dalam iklan untuk perusahaan pakaian olahraga Amerika Nike. Dia mengenakan sepatu sepak bola Nike Tiempo di Piala Dunia FIFA 1994. Pada tahun 1996, ia membintangi iklan Nike berjudul "Good vs Evil" dalam permainan gladiator yang berlatar Roman amphitheatre. Tampil bersama pemain sepak bola dari seluruh dunia, termasuk Ronaldo, Eric Cantona, Luís Figo, Patrick Kluivert dan Jorge Campos, mereka mempertahankan "permainan indah" melawan tim pejuang iblis, dengan Maldini menyatakan, "Maybe they're friendly?" sebelum dia memulai gerakan yang berpuncak dengan Cantona memukul bola dan "destroying evil".
^ ab"Paolo Maldini". Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 11 May 2008. Diakses tanggal 25 April 2008.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Maldini sets record". ESPN. 25 September 2005. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 14 July 2012. Diakses tanggal 25 April 2008.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Maldini to quit at end of season". BBC Sport. 16 December 2007. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 18 December 2007. Diakses tanggal 17 December 2007.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"1000 Maldini". AC Milan. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 13 May 2011. Diakses tanggal 24 July 2014.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Maldini mille e una notte". uefa.com. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 20 July 2012. Diakses tanggal 24 July 2014.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^Kelly, Cathal. "The monarch of defence". Toronto Star. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 14 May 2007. Diakses tanggal 6 May 2005.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Maldini recibe el MARCA Leyenda" [Maldini receives the MARCA Leyenda Award]. Marca (dalam bahasa Spanyol). Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 12 November 2019. Diakses tanggal 24 July 2014.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Paolo Maldini". Union of European Football Associations. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 28 December 2015. Diakses tanggal 9 July 2015.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Italia 2-1 Spagna" (dalam bahasa Italia). UEFA. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 7 July 2018. Diakses tanggal 22 May 2018.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"100 presenze Azzurre: Paolo Maldini" (dalam bahasa Italia). vivoazzurro.it. 6 October 2011. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 23 May 2018. Diakses tanggal 22 May 2018.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"The "Bravo" Award". RSSSF. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 1 July 2014. Diakses tanggal 26 June 2015.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^Karel Stokkermans (14 March 2007). "ESM XI". RSSSF. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 7 February 2016. Diakses tanggal 29 November 2015.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^"Weah crowned in Milan". FIFA. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 12 July 2015. Diakses tanggal 21 January 2015.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
^ abPierrend, José Luis (6 March 2012). ""Onze Mondial" Awards". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Diakses tanggal 26 December 2015.
^Christopher Davies (5 March 2004). "Pele open to ridicule over top hundred". The Telegraph. Diarsipkan dari versi asli tanggal 12 January 2022. Diakses tanggal 9 July 2015.Parameter |url-status= yang tidak diketahui akan diabaikan (bantuan)
tanggal 12 January 2022. Diakses tanggal 9 July 2015.
