Maldini's Bold Choice: Pirlo as Italy's Next Coach

Paolo Maldini has made his choice. And it is a bold one.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the legendary former defender has identified Andrea Pirlo as his ideal candidate to become the next Italy coach, pushing the Azzurri towards a new era built around one of the most distinctive football brains of his generation.

Maldini’s bet on Pirlo

As Italy’s technical director, Maldini, alongside his advisor Leonardo, has zeroed in on Pirlo after months of noise around more familiar names. Antonio Conte and Roberto Mancini have dominated the conversation for weeks, their profiles tried, tested and endlessly debated. Yet as the dust settles, it is Pirlo who has moved to the front of the queue.

Maldini backs him. Strongly. For style, for identity, for a clear tactical vision he believes can reshape the national team.

The choice, though, is not his alone to rubber-stamp.

Malagò’s approval and a crucial meeting

FIGC President Giovanni Malagò must give the final green light, and that is where the next decisive step lies. Gazzetta reports that Malagò is expected to meet Pirlo shortly, with the possibility that the summit could even take place today.

This will not be a courtesy handshake. Malagò wants to hear Pirlo’s ideas first-hand: how he sees the Azzurri playing, how he plans to manage a dressing room under the microscope, how he intends to handle the pressure of a country that still measures itself against 2006 and dreams of another summer like Euro 2020.

Only after that conversation will Maldini’s preferred option move closer to becoming reality.

Conte, Mancini still in the frame

The story is not a straight line, though. Conte and Mancini have not been pushed off the board.

Gazzetta notes that both remain in contention, with Mancini in particular still highly regarded by Malagò. His previous cycle with the national team, crowned by the European Championship triumph, clearly still carries weight in the president’s thinking.

Yet the technical call, the footballing judgement, rests with Maldini. And Maldini sees Pirlo at the helm.

Pirlo’s path to Coverciano

Pirlo’s coaching career has already taken him through some demanding benches. He has led Juventus and Sampdoria, and is currently in charge of United FC in the UAE Pro League. The image of him at Coverciano earlier this year, present at the “Panchina d’Oro” awards in Florence, felt at the time like a nod to his growing status within the coaching fraternity. Now it looks more like a prelude.

The question for the FIGC is simple but weighty: is this the right moment to hand the national team to a coach still carving out his reputation, but with a vision Maldini clearly trusts?

The answer will begin to take shape when Malagò and Pirlo finally sit across the table and talk about the future of the Azzurri.