AC Milan technical director Paolo Maldini ‘is FIRED after tense meeting with owner Gerry Cardinale’ after the Rossoneri finished just fourth in Serie A as defending champions
- Club icon Paolo Maldini met with AC Milan owner Gerry Cardinale on Monday
- The meeting did not go well and Maldini has reportedly been sacked by the club
- His right-hand man Ricky Massara has also been fired from his position
AC Milan icon Paolo Maldini has reportedly been sacked from his position as the club’s technical director after meeting owner Gerry Cardinale on Monday.
Maldini and Milan’s director of football Ricky Massara met with RedBird chief Cardinale to discuss plans for the next term after the Serie A season ends on Sunday.
The meeting did not go well, with the two sides unable to agree on how to move the club forward amid tense discussions, and Maldini and Massara have now been sacked, according to calciomercato.
Maldini’s departure will come as a particularly bitter blow to Milan fans given his legendary status at the club.
The 54-year-old spent 25 years as a player with Milan between 1984 and 2009, winning seven Serie A and five European Cups.
Paolo Maldini has reportedly been sacked as AC Milan’s technical director
The decision came after a tense meeting with Milan owner Gerry Cardinale (above)
After retiring, he returned to the club in 2018, initially as development director before being promoted to technical director the following year.
During his time in the role, Maldini has brought in a number of players who have flourished at Milan, including Rafael Leao and Fikayo Tomori.
The pair helped the Rossoneri end their 11-year wait for the Scudetto last year as Milan held off bitter rivals Inter Milan to clinch the title on the final day.
Maldini was widely praised after his signing led to Milan’s triumph, but the club’s business over the past 12 months has been disappointing.
High-profile signings such as Divock Origi and Charles De Ketelaere have not been able to shine as Stefano Pioli’s men have only managed to finish fourth in Serie A this season, 20 points behind champions Napoli.
They did make it to the semi-finals of the Champions League, but were defeated by Inter by a wide margin over two legs.
The Italian giants managed to convince Leao to sign a new long-term contract last week, but it has since emerged that CEO Giorgio Furlani led the negotiations instead of Maldini, as reported by Tuttomercatoweb.
Stefano Pioli’s men have had a disappointing campaign and Maldini has now paid the price
Rafael Leao posted a thinking face emoji to suggest he is unhappy with Maldini’s departure
Leao may dispute that, however, and the Portuguese star posted a thinking face emoji on Twitter on Monday night, suggesting he may not be happy with the club’s decision to let Maldini go.
La Republic has reported that some of Milan’s other star names are also angry at Maldini’s departure.
The report claims fullback Theo Hernandez could consider his future, while goalkeeper Mike Maignan may now be reluctant to sign a contract extension.
Veteran striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic also announced his retirement from football on Sunday, with Maldini’s sacking rounding off a dramatic 24 hours for Milan.