Luciano Spalletti was happy to see Napoli prove a point with Saturday's success over Atalanta following defeat to Lazio last time out.
"My players deserve this result because they wanted it so much after losing our last game,” the coach said in the wake of his side's 2-0 victory at the Stadio Maradona.
“There was too much negative talk after the Lazio match. Lots of people were quick to pass judgement and the right thing to do was respond on the pitch today.
"It's very difficult to beat Atalanta. They're a solid, aggressive side. Our intensity was good and then Kvara displayed the fabulous quality he has. He scored a Maradona goal today.
“The goal began with [Frank] Anguissa winning the ball back, then [Victor] Osimhen made that run and pass, and finally Khvicha capped it off with a gem.
“He's just phenomenal one on one. The way he sways past opponents it's impossible to tell which way he'll go, then he shoots with precision and power.”
Did you imagine Napoli could have such an incredible season?
"When you come to this city you know you're going to be enveloped by this immense, unique passion and you have to take responsibility and know where you want to go. When I decided to coach Napoli, I knew what these extraordinary people expect and what you need to do in professional and human terms for this club.
"We wanted to give joy to our fans, who were exceptional once again today. We'll do everything we can to reach the stars but there are lots of games left and we must play them with conviction and character. If we keep up this mentality, we can calm about it.”
