Maldini spotted in new meeting with Fenerbahce Presidential candidate

Italy legend Paolo Maldini was in Istanbul today for a meeting with Fenerbahce Presidential candidate Hakan Safi, who already met with him in Milan.

The former defender turns 58 next month and has been out of work since his shock dismissal as technical director of Milan in June 2023.

He has said repeatedly that he would not work for any other club within Italy other than his beloved Rossoneri, but the same might not be true of teams abroad.

This is all still hypothetical, as Hakan Safi is only a candidate to be President of Fenerbahce, who hopes that having Maldini lined up will help his election to the top job.

Following reports of a dinner meeting in Milan a couple of weeks ago, Turkish transfer expert Yagiz Sabuncuoglu posted an exclusive picture this evening of Maldini sitting down with Hakan Safi in Istanbul.

ÖZEL | Fenerbahçe Başkan adayı Hakan Safi, İtalyan futbol adamı Paolo Maldini ile futbol planlaması ve stratejisi için İstanbul'da bir araya geldi. Maldini yapılacak görüşmelerin ardından İstanbul'dan ayrılacak. pic.twitter.com/PKEzBdBhSt

— Yağız Sabuncuoğlu (@yagosabuncuoglu) May 23, 2026

It is believed that the Italian will fly out of Turkiye following the scheduled meetings.

Although some had suggested he could have a role in the Italian Football Federation, there was never any real progress on that front.