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Match Summary

• The Chelsea forward hands Chelsea the advantage in the first half.
• Atalanta the better side after the break and equalise through Gianluca Scamacca.
• The Belgian attacker scores a last-gasp winner for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea drop to 11th in the league phase of the tournament.
• The leading eight teams progress automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's hopes of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockouts were hit hard as Atalanta came from behind to triumph in their home stadium.

Each club went into this fixture with matching records in the league phase of this year's competition, having won, drawn, and suffered one defeat to be on ten points.

For large parts there was very little to choose between them in this encounter too, although Chelsea went ahead in the opening 45 minutes when Joao Pedro finished the captain's delivery.

But Atalanta always looked a danger going forward, with former Premier League attacker creating issues for the defence.

James shot wide in the after the break but Atalanta upped the pressure and deservedly levelled when former West Ham United striker nodded home a centering pass.

Alejandro Garnacho hammered a powerful shot straight at the keeper but they secured the winning goal in the closing stages when the Chelsea defence retreated from the midfielder, who seized the opportunity with a powerful shot.

The visitors attempted to salvage a point late on but a brilliant stop by the Atalanta goalkeeper kept out Pedro.

The result means Chelsea slip out of the top eight—the spots that progress automatically for the next round—to 11th with two group stage matches remaining.

The Bergamo club, meanwhile, jump up to third, three points clear of the Londoners.

Blues Breakdown - Concerning Form Persists

This was a extremely frustrating result for Chelsea as even a draw was leaving them well placed to achieve the top-eight position they need to bypass the uncertainty of the play-offs.

But they lacked concentration in defence with seven minutes remaining and Atalanta capitalised completely.

The Italian side are in fine fettle at the moment so this was always going to be a tough test for the visitors, but they will be frustrated to be departing with nothing after taking the lead.

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

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

Too Many Changes Turning Out to Be Expensive?

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made five changes for this game as he persisted with his strategy of rotating players in and out of the first team.

The rotations here came after he made the identical amount for the loss to Leeds and six for the tie with Bournemouth prior to the trip to Atalanta.

The coach will view rotation as necessary as he attempts to manage players' minutes and challenge both at home and abroad, but he maintained the core group of players remains the same for crucial games.

"I believe tonight [in] the starting lineup we had eight or nine players who featured against Tottenham Hotspur, FC Barcelona, and Arsenal," he said.

"If you see the five changes that we made relative to Bournemouth it may be different but it is the same eight or nine players who played in that match.

"The ones who played this evening are the ones playing almost all the matches."

Up Next for These Teams?

The Blues' next Champions League game sees them welcome Pafos on Wednesday, 21 January (8pm GMT).

Atalanta, meanwhile, are at home to Athletic Bilbao at the same time.