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Match Summary

• Joao Pedro hands Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• Atalanta the stronger side after the break and equalise through Gianluca Scamacca.
• The Belgian attacker grabs a last-gasp winner for the home side.
• The defeat means Chelsea drop to eleventh place in the group stage of the Champions League.
• The leading eight teams progress automatically for the knockout phase.

Chelsea's ambitions of qualifying automatically for the European Cup knockouts were suffered a setback as their Italian opponents came from behind to claim victory in their home stadium.

Each club went into this fixture with matching points tallies in the initial stage of this season's tournament, having secured three victories, tied one, and suffered one defeat to sit on ten points.

For extended periods there was not much to distinguish them in this encounter too, although Chelsea got their noses in front in the opening 45 minutes when Joao Pedro turned in Reece James' delivery.

But The Serie A side consistently appeared a danger going forward, with ex- Charlton and Everton attacker creating issues for the defence.

Reece James shot wide in the after the break but Atalanta increased the intensity and deservedly levelled when former West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca a centering pass.

Alejandro Garnacho drove a strong effort straight at the goalkeeper but Atalanta got the winning goal in the closing stages when the Blues defenders retreated from Charles de Ketelaere, who seized the opportunity with a driven shot.

The visitors attempted to salvage a point in stoppage time but a brilliant stop by the Atalanta goalkeeper kept out Joao Pedro.

The outcome means Chelsea fall out of the top eight—the spots that qualify automatically for the next round—to 11th with two group stage fixtures remaining.

The Bergamo club, in contrast, leap up to third, three points ahead of the Blues.

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Run Continues

This was a deeply disappointing outcome for Chelsea as even a draw was leaving them well placed to secure the top eight finish they need to avoid the uncertainty of the play-offs.

But they lost focus in defence with seven minutes left on the clock and Atalanta capitalised completely.

The Italians are in rich vein of form at the moment so this was always going to be a challenging test for the Blues, but they will be disappointed to be departing with nothing after securing the early advantage.

But the broader context is that this perpetuates Chelsea's concerning sequence of form in all tournaments.

Since beating the Spanish giants 3-0 at the end of November they are now winless in their last four matches.

Excessive Changes Proving Costly?

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made five alterations for this game as he continued his strategy of moving players in and out of the starting lineup.

The rotations here came after he implemented the identical amount for the defeat to Leeds United and six for the draw with AFC Bournemouth prior to the journey to Bergamo.

The coach will view rotation as vital as he tries to manage players' workloads and compete both at domestically and in Europe, but he stated the central contingent of players stays the same for crucial games.

"I think in this match [in] the first XI we had eight or nine players who featured against Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, and the Gunners," he said.

"If you look at the five changes that we did compared to the previous game it is different but it is the eight or nine players playing in that match.

"The players who took to the field this evening are the ones who feature in almost all the games."

What Next for These Clubs?

The Blues' next European fixture sees them host Pafos on the coming Wednesday (20:00 GMT).

The Italian team, meanwhile, host Athletic Club at the identical kick-off time.