As the Italian national team prepares to announce its new squad, Cagliari coach Fabio Pisacane publicly backed Maldini, believing that the forward's performances merit a call-up from Roberto Mancini.

After a difficult week, Maldini has the backing of his head coach.

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Pisacane said: "I hope Maldini is also on the list. He deserves this call-up. I didn't expect him to be this strong before. Coaches who have worked with him in the past told me he is a player with pure talent, but in fact, he has much more than that."

Speaking about Maldini's performance in training, Pisacane added: "I was watching him during training this morning, and he performed really well."

Regarding whether Maldini will start in Cagliari's match against Udinese on Saturday afternoon, Pisacane did not give a definitive answer, stating that he will make a final decision before Saturday.

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