Platini won the Ballon D'or 3 years in a row heading into the 1986 WC so the correct answer is yes he was seen as the better player up to that point.
Maradona wasn't eligible for it. Platini's almost instant fall from top 10 all time to retirement was down to a combination of injuries, age and tiredness. He really stopped being a world class player after the '86 world cup
I will point out as well that Platini played for Juventus and a great french NT, while Maradona got shredded by insane tackles in barcelona and then went to Napoli. Where, once he hit his peak, he had to compete with the milan of berlusconi which at the time was basically like competing against City and PSG rolled into one without FFP, and then an inter side with Lothar Matthaus, Klinsmann, Brehme and Bergomi among others, as well as the juventus of Platini. And still it was obvious from the moment Maradona started playing for Napoli that he was better/going to be better than Platini ever had been. Which he was
That is fair enough, I cannot name many without google to be honest. I can only name Ciro Ferrera, De Napoli and Giordano. Ferrera was definitely World Class.
That is loose definition of world class honestly. Ferrara was a kid at the time, too. I'd say only Careca qualifies as WC, and he was signed in '87, after Maradona had already won the title almost by himself. That said by the time they won Napoli were hardly bang average, even without Diego. But it'd be like dropping Messi on Wolves, and them winning the title, more or less