[misha]

Depending on who you believe, the secret to longevity might be a good wife, a lack of stress, red meat or even gin. Yet as AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini weighs up the prospect of a ninth UEFA Champions League semi-final, the 38-year-old is keen to put a different slant on things.

German confidence
A 2-0 victory against FC Bayern München saw the Rossoneri claim a last-four date with Manchester United FC, though the prospect had appeared decidedly bleak a week earlier. A late equaliser by Daniel Van Buyten at the San Siro had earned Bayern a 2-2 draw to put the Bundesliga side in the box seat for the second leg. It inspired one German television channel to bill the decider as "Die Nacht Der Bayern" (The night of Bayern), but this confidence was to prove unfounded. After weathering an early storm, Clarence Seedorf and Filippo Inzaghi scored and a stellar defensive display orchestrated by Maldini saw them through.

'Great mentality'
"I approached the match in my usual positive way," Maldini said. "We knew we needed a win, but this team is blessed by players with a great mentality; they prove that every time. Now it is Manchester United - I think they were probably hoping to meet Bayern." The ashen look on the face of the attendant Sir Alex Ferguson at the end of the match at the Fußball Arena München suggested that assumption might well have some grounding. The United manager has good reason to fear the Italian side, who ended his team's campaign in the last 16 two seasons ago thanks to 1-0 wins, home and away.

'Not scared'
Sir Alex had borne a very different appearance 24 hours earlier as his charges routed Milan's Serie A rivals AS Roma 7-1. Not since Juventus lost 7-0 to Austrian champions Wiener SC in 1958 had an Italian side conceded so many goals in one match in the competition. Maldini is confident his team-mates will provide a sterner test. "Manchester United have grown in strength over the past few years, and Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo are extremely impressive," he conceded. "It will be a difficult match, played at a great tempo. But we are not scared and we will go there in high spirits. What makes us strong is our great mentality, our determination. We are always ready when it counts."

Maldini name
Milan have been crowned European champions six times, and only once has there not been a Maldini in their ranks. Paolo's father Cesare was part of the victorious 1963 European Champion Clubs' Cup team while the current incarnation has collected four winners' medals - in 1989, 1990, 1994 and 2003 – during an unparalleled 23-year spell at the San Siro. Such is his legend that when he does hang up his boots the No3 shirt will be retired unless one of his sons plays for the club. Ominously for rivals hoping to see the back of the Maldini clan, Paolo's eldest child Christian, 13, is already on the Rossoneri's books. It is surely no accident that the Maldini name is an anagram of "di Milan" (of Milan).

'I love the atmosphere'
Maldini is not looking to bow out just yet, however, and has postponed much-needed surgery on a troublesome knee injury until the summer as he goes in pursuit of more silverware. But having won so much, what drives his ambitions for more? "I keep playing because I love the atmosphere," said the former Italy captain. "To play just one more semi-final on an English ground, with the atmosphere we will face there and the possibility of reaching another final gives me the strength to keep going."

'Very proud'
Any "possibility" of a final has become a virtual probability for Maldini over the years, and until last season's defeat by FC Barcelona, he had never lost a last-four fixture. "This is yet another [European Cup] semi-final for me, my ninth. It went well seven times and I hope I will be able to make it to eight. This time we have qualified as the only non-English team, and in the last 20 years we have always been there; it makes me feel very proud. We have been somewhere near the top of the pile for years, ever since 1988."

'In our grasp'
Maldini had made his Milan debut three years previously, against Udinese Calcio in January 1985, with the dawn of his career on the horizon. Two decades on he is eager for one last showpiece final – something that looked highly unlikely when the Rossoneri began their campaign seven months ago in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal. "Last summer this target looked almost impossible, and now it is in our grasp," said Maldini. If the past 20 years have taught us anything it is that when Milan get a tentative hold on something, they tend to make it count.

©uefa.com

[dst]

Oh my God! (IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif)

[Tennie]

(IMG:http://cyrus.medialayer.net/~m1ke/milanfan.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/king.gif) Yes. He wears the #3 jersey for Milan.