The Czech Republic international added: "I think it was an amazing game for the supporters to watch, there were a lot of counter-attacks, shots and chances.
"But if you come to a place where they are strong at scoring and leave them so many moments you can get punished.
"We went 1-0 up and had a spell where we controlled the game but they got a goal just before half-time that made a difference because they could sit back and wait for the counter-attack.
"We tried to score and it became dangerous for us as they looked for a third goal."
Mata put Chelsea 1-0 up before Lavezzi's double and an Edinson Cavani goal turned things around, making for a testing return at Stamford Bridge.
Mata said: "One-nil would have been an excellent result for us but we didn't keep it.
"Napoli are a very strong team in this stadium but now we have the second game and we are going to put in 100% at the Bridge.