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Carlo Ancelotti praised his side’s reaction to being eliminated from the Coppa Italia in midweek after Napoli recorded a comfortable 3-0 win over Sampdoria in Serie A on Saturday.

Gli Azzurri crashed out of the cup at the quarter final stage after suffering a 2-0 defeat to Milan on Tuesday but responded in fine fashion with a routine victory at the weekend courtesy of goals from Arkadiusz Milik, Lorenzo Insigne and Simone Verdi.

Ancelotti admitted that he got the reaction that he expected from his side following their midweek disappointment against his former club. As quoted by Napoli’s official website, the Italian said: “I was expecting that sort of reaction from the team.

“It was a very good performance but we’ve nearly always played well this season – the Coppa Italia game in Milan was the exception.

“We didn’t manage to get many balls in behind at the San Siro whereas today we did because we played at a higher tempo. All the lads raised their game and performed well. It was a thoroughly deserved win.”

Meanwhile, club captain Marek Hamsik is reportedly on the verge of completing a move to China after spending the last 12 seasons at the Stadio San Paolo, having become the club’s record goal scorer in that time.

Ancelotti also addressed Hamsik’s future after Saturday’s game, as the former Chelsea boss added: “There are talks in progress with the Chinese. We’ll see how it pans out. Marek is a fabulous player and he wants to try a new experience.

“If he does leave, we have other good options in midfield. Obviously we don’t have another Hamsik but other players who can do a different job in the same position and just as well.”

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Saturday’s win left Napoli nine points adrift of league leaders Juventus after the champions were held to a 3-3 draw at home to Parma, and Ancelotti’s side will look to make up further ground at the top the Serie A table when they travel to face Fiorentina away next Saturday.