"Killer" Gentile hits back at Maradona

Former star Italian defender Claudio Gentile has called Diego Maradona a buffoon after the Argentina coach referred to him as a killer, DPA reported.

"After what he said, I must agree with the opinion of Pele and Platini: Maradona is more a buffoon than a coach," Tuesday's edition of the Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport quoted Gentile as saying.

Pele is a Brazilian ex-footballer widely regarded as the greatest player of all time. Michel Platini is a French ex-footballer who is currently the president of UEFA, the governing body of European football.

Maradona had recalled Gentile's hard style of play as he commented on a foul against Lionel Messi during Argentina's 3-1 World Cup win over Mexico on Sunday.

"We're not back in the days of killer defenders like Gentile," Maradona said.

Bad blood between the two dates to when the Argentine star played with Napoli in the 1980s, often vying with Gentile's Juventus for the Serie A title.

Gentile, who won the 1982 World Cup with the Azzurri, recalled that Maradona was sent off in the Spain-hosted tournament for kicking a Brazilian opponent.

"I was never dismissed for violent play," Gentile said. "I was red-carded for a handball in the Champions League, and that was it.

"He's a buffoon. That's his opinion, but I don't respect it and I don't agree."

Gentile's aggressive marking style brought him eighth place in "Football's 50 Greatest Hard Men" published by The Times in 2007.

The English newspaper ranked him right before Giuseppe Bergomi and Marco Tardelli, who also manned Italy's defence in 1982.