Maldini has shaken off a thigh strain and his inclusion is a major boost for coach Dino Zoff, who has warned his team against complacency going into the match in the intimidating Amsterdam ArenA.

Zoff is determined not to let his men rest on their laurels after reaching an unexpected place in the last four.

Italy have had a miserable season in international football - qualifying for these championships with little glory and losing four of their seven matches before touching down in the Low Countries.

Four straight wins may have silenced the critics, but Zoff wants his men to be gladiators at the ArenA on Thursday evening - even if it means counting the dead afterwards.

Asked what he will be telling his men, he said: "I'd say that it's an important match and that just because nobody gave them any credit beforehand, they certainly shouldn't feel satisfied now that they have reached the semi-finals.

"They shouldn't settle for this," he said. "They have to play with their usual determination, and then we'll count the dead afterwards." Asked what it will take to beat the Dutch, he said: "We're in the semi-finals against a great team who are playing at home, and we've seen how strong they can be. So clearly, we'll need a great performance."

Asked whether Italy had less to lose than the Dutch, he said: "Whether you have more to gain or more to lose before a match is worth zero. "Let's just say that we're playing an opponent who will have the home crowd behind them and who are in good shape and who have shown some good football. "So it's only to be expected that they are slightly more favourites, but that doesn't change much."

And he summed up: "We'll find out tomorrow if they're beatable. On paper, I've seen all the approaches we could adopt. But on the pitch, it's a very different thing." Maldini trained with the rest of the squad on the ArenA pitch on Wednesday. Asked directly if Italy's captain would play, Zoff said: "Yes."

The training session finished with the usual session of penalty kicks for the strikers - Italy's last three World Cups having all ended in defeat in a penalty shoot-out. For Holland, coach Frank Rijkaard has a number of injury concerns ahead of Thursday's semi-final with Italy.

Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar and striker Patrick Kluivert have muscle problems, Phillip Cocu a bruised hip and Arthur Numan a foot injury. Kluivert and van der Sar have undergone light training away from the Dutch squad but are expected to be fit.

Cocu insists he will also be ready but Rijkaard is less certain about Numan's chances.