Cesare Maldini

Cesare Maldini (Trieste, Italy, February 5, 1932-Milan, April 3, 2016) was an Italian soccer player and coach who played as a defender, a historic member of A.C. Milan, club to which he owes his greatest successes and recognitions and in which he remained for almost his entire career. He started at Unione Sportiva Triestina Calcio and retired at Torino Football Club after fifteen active seasons.

As a coach, he directed the aforementioned A.C. Milan and the Italian and Paraguayan national teams, among other Italian teams. He was the father of former soccer player and rossonero captain, Paolo Maldini and grandfather of soccer player Daniel Maldini.

Trajectory

Beginnings

Maldini began his playing career with the local team U.S. Triestina, in 1952, and made his Serie A debut in his first season with the club, on May 24, 1953, in a 0-0 draw against Palermo.

Arrival at Milan and further successes

Maldini at A. C. Milan.

After two seasons with triestina, Maldini moved to A. C. Milan in 1954, where he reached notable hits both nationally and internationally in the headline alignment of the team, also becoming an important figure in the club. He made his debut with the Club on September 19, 1954, in a 4-0 victory in the League over his previous team, presenting in a team of Milan that included several important players at that time, such as Lorenzo Buffon, Francesco Zagatti, Nils Liedholm, Gunnar Nordahl and Juan Alberto Schiaffino; He immediately broke into the first team and won his first league title in his debut season with the team.

In total, he made 347 appearances for Milan in series A, scoring 3 goals, and made 412 appearances for the club in all competitions. Maldini won four league titles ( Scudetto By Gianni Rivera. During his time with Milan, he also won a Latin Cup, and went on to get the first European Cup of the Club as a team captain in 1963, when Milan defeated Benfica 2-1 at the Wembley stadium on May 22, with two goals from José Altafini; As a result, Milan became the first Italian team to win the trophy, while Maldini became the first Italian captain to lift the cup.

last years and retirement

made his last appearance for Milan on May 22, 1966, in a 6-1 local victory over Catania, in series A. in 1966 he went to Torino for a season, before retiring in 1967; He made his last appearance in the series A May 28, in a 2-1 defeat against Napoli.

National Team

Internationally, Maldini played 14 games (0 goals), with the Italian team between 1960 and 1963, also served as captain of the national team between 1962 and 1963, but was less successful than with Milan. He made his debut on January 6, 1960, in a 3-0 victory over Switzerland in the Central International Cup 1955-60, and later participated in the FIFA World Cup in 1962 with Italy, making two appearances in the competence. The team suffered a disappointing and controversial elimination in the first round, although it was appointed for the tournament team for their performances.

made his last appearance for Italy in a classification match for the European Championship in Moscow, in 1963, when Italy suffered a 2-0 defeat against the Soviet Union.

PARTICIPATIONS IN WORLD Cups

World	Headquarters	Outcome
1962 World Cup Soccer/Football	ChileChile	First phase

Career as a coach

Early Years

Maldini during his stage as coach of A. C. Milan in 1973.

After retiring as a player, Maldini became a coach, starting his career as Nereo Rocco's assistant at Milan in 1970, later also coaching the team from 1972-1974, while Rocco served as Milan's technical director. club. Maldini's first official game as Milan's head coach came on September 6, 1972, in a 4-1 win over FA Red Boys Differdange in the Cup Winners' Cup, Maldini won an Italian Cup and a European Cup Winners' Cup, renewed in 1973, narrowly missing out on the league title that season. He was sacked by the club in 1974, after a disappointing 2-1 loss to Verona on 6 April, and was replaced by Giovanni Trapattoni for the final games of the season.

He later went on to coach Foggia (1974-1976), Ternana (1976-77), and Serie C side Parma (1978-1980), helping the team win promotion to Serie B during his tenure with the club, after managing a second-place finish in the league during the 1978-79 Serie C season.

Between 1980 and 1986, he was one of Enzo Bearzot's assistants for the Italian national team, even serving as assistant manager during the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain, which Italy won.

Coach of Italy U21

Maldini took charge of the Italian Under-21 team in 1986, and coached the team for ten years, winning the Under-21 Euro Cup, a record three consecutive times between 1992 and 1996. As coach of the Under-21 team from Italy, Maldini was also known as a mentor to many of the team's players, who later stated that he played a key role in their development; indeed, former protégés Fabio Cannavaro, Gianluigi Buffon and Francesco Totti from Maldini's 1996 Under-21 Euro-winning side went on to win the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Olympic Games of Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996.

1998 World Cup with the Italian national team

Following his successes with the Under-21 team, Maldini took charge of the senior team in December 1996, replacing Arrigo Sacchi. After taking over as manager of the national team, he helped Italy beat England 1-0 at Wembley Stadium on February 12, 1997, and helped the team qualify for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Under Maldini, Italy were one of four teams that also participated in the 1997 Tournoi de France friendly tournament, against their wishes, in which they finished in last place. Despite initially struggling in qualifying, the Italian media and fans had high expectations of the 1998 side, which included a solid defense, and several prolific attacking players, including Christian Vieri, Alessandro Del Piero and Filippo Inzaghi, among others, in his prime. Cesare Maldini's son Paolo was the team captain.

Italy was placed in Group B of the tournament with Chile, Cameroon and Austria. They won their group, drawing 2-2 with Chile in their opening match, and then beat Cameroon 3-0 and Austria 2-1. Advancing to the round of 16, Italy beat Norway 1–0 to secure a place in the quarter-finals against tournament hosts France. After a goalless draw, Italy were ultimately eliminated by the eventual champions on penalties.

Return to Milan

After serving as head scout for his former team Milan since February 1999, Maldini returned briefly to coach Milan's first team in March 2001, serving as interim manager of the club (whose captain was his son, Paolo) along with youth coach Mauro Tassotti, following the sacking of Alberto Zaccheroni, leading the team for its final games of the season. Although the club endured a disappointing season, finishing in sixth place and failing to qualify for the Champions League, Maldini led the team to a memorable 6–0 victory over city rivals Inter in the Milan Derby on 11 May.; the result was Inter's worst home defeat in Serie A, and Milan's biggest league win ever in the Derby. After helping the club qualify for the UEFA Cup, Maldini was replaced by Fatih Terim the following season, although he initially stayed with the club as an advisor to the manager.

World Cup 2002 with Paraguay

In December 2001, Maldini became coach of the Paraguayan national team. His appointment caused some controversy as national managers were ignored (prompting the managers union to unsuccessfully try to expel him for immigration violations) and because he spoke little Spanish. Maldini, however, was supported by star goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert and several other high-level players. He took charge of the team that had already qualified for the 2002 World Cup organized by South Korea and Japan; at the age of 70, he became, what was at the time, the oldest coach to lead a national team in a World Cup tournament (his son Paolo captained Italy in the same tournament); this record later broken by Greece coach Otto Rehhagel at the 2010 World Cup.

Despite losing Chilavert in the first game due to suspension, Paraguay managed to progress from Group B to the Round of 16, after a 2-2 draw with South Africa, a 3-1 loss to Spain, and a 3-1 win over Slovenia. In the round of 16, Paraguay were knocked out by eventual finalists Germany, losing 1–0 courtesy of an 89th-minute goal from Oliver Neuville. After the world championship, Maldini resigned as Paraguay's coach.

Managed matches in the Paraguayan team

Since he took office, Maldini has led the red-and-red team in 8 games, adding official and friendlies, of which he won 2, drew 2 and lost 3. His coaches scored 11 goals and conceded 15.

Parties with the selection of Paraguay
N.o	Date	Place	Rival	Outcome	Competition	Shots (only Paraguay)
1	13/2/2002	Eastern City	Bolivia	2-2	Friendly	J. Cardozo and E. Struway
2	26/3/2002	London	Nigeria	1-1	Friendly	C. Gamarra
3	17/4/2002	Liverpool	England	0-4	Friendly
4	17/5/2002	Solna	Sweden	2-1	Friendly	R. Santa Cruz and C. Paredes
5	2/6/2002	Pusan	South Africa	2-2	World Cup	R. Santa Cruz and F. Arce
6	7/6/2002	Jeonju	Spain	1-3	World Cup
7	12/6/2002	Seogwipo	Slovenia	3-1	World Cup	N. Caves (2) and J. Campos
8	15/6/2002	Seogwipo	Germany	0-1	World Cup

The marker recorded by the umbrella.

Clubs

As a player

Club	Country	Year
U.S. Triestina	ItalyItaly	1952 - 1953
A. C. Milan	ItalyItaly	1954 - 1966
Torino F. C.	ItalyItaly	1966 - 1967

As a coach

Club	Country	Year
A. C. Milan	ItalyItaly	1970 - 1972 (second int.)
A. C. Milan	ItalyItaly	1972 - 1974
Foggia	ItalyItaly	1974 - 1976
Ternana	ItalyItaly	1976 - 1977
Parma FC	ItalyItaly	1978 - 1980
Selection of Italy	ItalyItaly	1980 - 1986 (second int.)
Selection of Italy sub-21	ItalyItaly	1986 - 1996
Selection of Italy	ItalyItaly	1996 - 1998
A. C. Milan	ItalyItaly	2001
Selection of Paraguay	Paraguay Paraguay	2001 - 2002

Death

Cesare died on April 3, 2016, at the age of 84 in Milan, Italy. In his honor, a minute of silence was held before each match of the Italian League in that weekend, while the players A. C. Milan carried black bracelets in their match against the Atalanta. Maldini's funeral took place on April 5, in the Basilica of San Ambrosio, in Milan, and was attended by several important football figures, including his son Paolo. His wife died later that year, on July 28.

Family

Paolo Maldini, son of Cesare.

The son of Albino Maldini, a sailor, and Maria Cesare Maldini was born in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. He married María Luisa in 1962; together they had six children: three sons and three daughters.

One of his sons, Paolo Maldini, played for A.C. Milan from 1984 to 2009, also holding the record for most caps for the national team (now third behind Gianluigi Buffon and Fabio Cannavaro). In the Milanese team, Paolo played a total of 902 games and won 26 titles, 13 international and 13 national, he is the player with the most games played and the most titles achieved in the club's history (records still in force).

Cesare and Paolo are two of the greatest legends of the rossonero club.

Honours of Prizes

As a player

National competitions

• Series A

AC Milan: 1954-55, 1956-57, 1958-59, 1961-62.

International competitions

• Latin Cup

AC Milan: 1956.

• European Champions Cup

AC Milan: 1962-1963.

As a coach

Clubs

• Coup Europe

AC Milan: 1972-1973.

• Italian Cup

AC Milan: 1972-73

Italy National Team

• European Championship sub 21

1992, 1996

Individual awards