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Match Summary

• The Chelsea forward hands Chelsea the lead in the opening period.
• Atalanta the stronger side after the interval and equalise through the striker.
• Charles de Ketelaere grabs a late winner for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea fall to eleventh place in the group stage of the tournament.
• The leading eight teams progress automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's chances of securing a place automatically for the European Cup knockout stages were suffered a setback as Atalanta overturned a deficit to triumph in Bergamo.

Each club went into this match with the same records in the initial stage of this year's competition, having secured three victories, drawn, and suffered one defeat to be on 10 points.

For much of the game there was not much to distinguish them in this encounter too, even though Chelsea took the lead in the first half when the Brazilian converted Reece James' cross.

But The Serie A side remained a threat going forwards, with former Charlton and Everton attacker creating issues for the defence.

Reece James shot wide in the second half but the home team increased the pressure and deservedly equalised when ex-West Ham striker headed in a centering pass.

The winger hammered a powerful shot straight at the keeper but Atalanta scored the winning goal in the closing stages when the Chelsea defenders retreated from the midfielder, who took full advantage with a driven finish.

The visitors tried to rescue a point late on but a superb save by Marco Carnesecchi denied Pedro.

The final score means Chelsea slip out of the automatic qualification places—the spots that qualify automatically for the knockouts—to eleventh with two group stage matches left to play.

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

Chelsea Analysis - Concerning Form Continues

This was a deeply disappointing outcome for Chelsea as even a point was keeping them in a strong position to achieve the top eight finish they need to avoid the lottery of the play-offs.

But they lost focus in defence with seven minutes left on the clock and Atalanta took full advantage.

The Italian side are in rich vein of form at the moment so this was always going to be a difficult examination for the Blues, but they will be disappointed to be departing with no points after securing the lead.

But the bigger picture is that this extends Chelsea's concerning streak of form in all tournaments.

Since defeating Barcelona 3-0 at the end of November they are now without a win in their last four games.

Too Many Changes Turning Out to Be Expensive?

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made five rotations for this game as he persisted with his run of rotating players in and out of the starting lineup.

The changes here came after he implemented the identical amount for the loss to Leeds United and six for the tie with AFC Bournemouth prior to the journey to Atalanta.

The coach will see squad rotation as necessary as he attempts to manage players' fitness and challenge both at domestically and in Europe, but he insisted the core group of players remains the same for important fixtures.

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

"If you look at the five changes that we did compared to Bournemouth it may be different but it is the same eight or nine players who played Barcelona.

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

What's Next for These Clubs?

The Blues' next Champions League fixture sees them welcome Pafos on the coming Wednesday (20:00 GMT).

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