Batistuta taunts Italy but has ‘no answer’ on Messi-Maradona debate

Batistuta taunts Italy but has ‘no answer’ on Messi-Maradona debate Serie A legend Gabriel Omar Batistuta admits he ‘didn’t enjoy playing football’ and still has ‘no answer’ to the Messi-Maradona debate. The former Fiorentina , Roma and Inter star released an interview with Gazzetta on Friday, discussing Argentina’s World Cup campaign and his footballing career. Lionel Scaloni, a former Atalanta and Lazio defender, already led the Argentines to the World Cup victory four years ago and the defending champions remain among the favourites in this summer’s tournament. Batistuta: ‘Italians can’t talk about easy matches’ “The team is happy with him [Scaloni],” Batistuta said. “Let’s be honest, this is football; you don’t need to study it like going to the moon. If the manager and the team have a good relationship, that’s a huge achievement: everyone will follow his ideas. And Scaloni is succeeding at that.” Argentina will face Cape Verde in the Round of 32 in just a few hours, is Batistuta confindent that his compatriot will easily make it to the next round? “Calm down… You Italians can’t talk about easy matches,” he replied, joking. “Seriously, I’m confident but not relaxed. The group stage is one thing; playing to progress or go home is another. Everyone talks, but they forget that football is about chasing a ball, which sometimes hits the post, and you don’t know if it will go in or out.” When asked what he misses about being a footballer, the Argentine legend replied: “Nothing. I didn’t enjoy playing football, partly because of the pain, partly because I knew people paid to watch me. I didn’t allow myself to have fun. When I scored, I felt it was my responsibility to put on the best show. And I wasn’t born Maradona; I had to work for it. “I was hard on myself for 40 years; now I live what’s left with joy,” he added. 27 Oct 1999: Gabriele Batistuta of Fiorentina in action during the UEFA European Champions League Group B match against Arsenal played at Wembley Stadium, London. The game finished in a 1-0 away win for Fiorentina and saw the elimination of Arsenal fromthe second phase. Mandatory Credit: Alex Livesey /Allsport “Like everyone, I don’t know how long it will last. I have cows in the countryside in Reconquista, my hometown. Usually, I manage them, but sometimes I need to look after them directly, and I do. Then I travel with the FIFA Legends, and that’s very nice.” How about his former club, Fiorentina? “I follow them, but I’ve become a bit detached from Fiorentina. I know they’ve hired Fabio Grosso, and I know he’s done well in recent years. I’ll return to Florence for the club’s 100th-anniversary celebration later in the summer.” 15 Mar 2000: Gabriel Batistuta of Fiorentina celebrates his goal during the UEFA Champions League match against Manchester United at Old Trafford in Manchester, England. Manchester United won the match 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Ross Kinnaird /Allsport Lastly, Gazzetta asked whether he prefers Messi or Maradona, but Bati replied with another bitter joke: “Hey, they told me this was a serious interview, not a trivial one. The truth is, we ask ourselves that question too… and we don’t have an answer.” Batistuta won the Scudetto with Roma in 2000-01 and scored 183 goals in 318 Serie A matches.