A left-footed player, Maldera was a modern full-back who possessed an accurate and powerful shot, which earned him the nickname "Aldo-gol", due to his prolific goalscoring ability, despite his more defensive playing role; he was a hard-working team player, who was capable of covering the flank effectively and aiding his team both offensively and defensively.

Throughout his career, he was known for his pace, stamina, technique, dribbling, and crossing ability; his speed and galloping offensive runs earned him the nickname "the horse".

Maldera won a total two Serie A titles throughout his career, at A.C. Milan and A.S. Roma respectively, both under the tutelage of manager Nils Liedholm.

He represented his country at the 1978 FIFA World Cup,[6] and at Euro 1980 on home soil, where the Italy national side finished in fourth place on both occasions, reaching the semi-finals.

He also worked as member of the A.S. Roma youth system until 2004, and later also as Sport director of Greek club Panionios F.C.