🔗 Share this article

Key Moments

• The Chelsea forward gives Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the better side after the break and equalise through Gianluca Scamacca.
• The Belgian attacker nets a last-gasp winner for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea drop to 11th in the league phase of the tournament.
• The top eight qualify automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's hopes of qualifying automatically for the European Cup knockout stages were hit hard as Atalanta came from behind to claim victory in Bergamo.

Both sides entered this match with the same records in the league phase of this season's tournament, having won, tied one, and suffered one defeat to be on 10 points.

For extended periods there was very little to distinguish them in this encounter too, although Chelsea got their noses in front in the opening 45 minutes when the Brazilian finished the captain's delivery.

But The Serie A side always looked a danger going forwards, with ex- Premier League attacker creating issues for the backline.

James shot wide in the after the break but Atalanta increased the intensity and rightfully equalised when former West Ham United striker nodded home a cross.

The winger hammered a powerful shot straight at the keeper but Atalanta secured the decisive strike in the closing stages when the Chelsea defence retreated from the midfielder, who took full advantage with a powerful shot.

The visitors tried to salvage a draw late on but a superb stop by the Atalanta goalkeeper kept out Joao Pedro.

The result means Chelsea slip out of the automatic qualification places—the positions that progress automatically for the next round—to eleventh with two group stage games remaining.

Atalanta, in contrast, jump up to third, three points ahead of the Londoners.

Chelsea Analysis - Concerning Sequence Persists

This was a extremely frustrating result for Chelsea as even a point was keeping them well placed to achieve the top-eight finish they need to avoid the uncertainty of the qualifying play-off round.

But they let their concentration slip in their defensive duties with seven minutes remaining and Atalanta seized the moment.

The Italian side are in good form at the moment so this was always going to be a challenging test for the Blues, but they will be annoyed to be leaving with no points after securing the lead.

But the broader context is that this extends Chelsea's worrying streak of form in all tournaments.

Since defeating Barcelona 3-0 at the end of November they are now winless in their last four games.

Excessive Changes Proving Expensive?

Manager Enzo Maresca made five alterations for this match as he persisted with his policy of rotating players in and out of the first team.

The changes here followed after he made the same number for the defeat to Leeds United and six for the draw with Bournemouth prior to the trip to Bergamo.

Maresca will see rotation as necessary as he attempts to manage players' minutes and challenge both at domestically and abroad, but he maintained the key nucleus of players stays the same for crucial games.

"I think tonight [in] the starting lineup we had eight or nine players who played against Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, and the Gunners," he stated.

"If you look at the five alterations that we did compared to the previous game it may be different but it involves the same eight or nine players playing Barcelona.

"The ones who took to the field tonight are the ones who feature in almost all the games."

What's Next for These Clubs?

Chelsea's next Champions League game sees them host Pafos on the coming Wednesday (20:00 GMT).

The Italian team, on the other hand, are at home to Athletic Club at the identical kick-off time.