The Blues' Hopes Suffer a Setback by Defeat at Bergamo

Match Summary

• Joao Pedro hands Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the better side after the break and equalise through Gianluca Scamacca.
• Charles de Ketelaere grabs a last-gasp winner for the home side.
• Loss means Chelsea fall to 11th in the league phase of the Champions League.
• The leading eight teams qualify automatically for the knockouts.

Chelsea's ambitions of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockout stages were hit hard as their Italian opponents fought back to claim victory in Bergamo.

Both sides entered this fixture with the same points tallies in the league phase of this year's tournament, having secured three victories, drawn, and lost to have accrued ten points.

For much of the game there was very little to choose between them in this encounter too, even though Chelsea took the lead in the opening 45 minutes when Joao Pedro converted Reece James' cross.

But Atalanta consistently appeared a threat going forwards, with ex- Charlton and Everton attacker Ademola Lookman problems for the backline.

Reece James fired wide in the after the break but the home team raised the pressure and deservedly drew level when ex-West Ham striker headed in a centering pass.

The winger hammered a strong effort straight at the goalkeeper but Atalanta scored the decisive strike late on when the Chelsea defence backed off Charles de Ketelaere, who took full advantage with a powerful strike.

Chelsea attempted to salvage a point late on but a brilliant save by Marco Carnesecchi denied Joao Pedro.

The final score means Chelsea fall out of the automatic qualification places—the positions that progress automatically for the next round—to 11th with two league phase fixtures left to play.

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

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Sequence Persists

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

But they lacked concentration in defence with seven minutes remaining and Atalanta seized the moment.

The Italians are in fine fettle at the moment so this was always going to be a difficult examination for the visitors, but they will be frustrated to be departing with nothing after securing the lead.

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

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

Too Many Changes Proving Expensive?

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made five changes for this game as he persisted with his run of rotating players in and out of the starting 11.

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

Maresca will view squad rotation as vital as he tries to manage players' minutes and compete both at home and abroad, but he stated the core group of players remains the same for key games.

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

"If you see the five changes that we made compared to the previous game it may be different but it is the same eight or nine players playing Barcelona.

"The ones who played tonight are the individuals who feature in almost all the games."

What's Next for These Teams?

The Blues' next European fixture sees them welcome the Cypriot side on Wednesday, 21 January (20:00 GMT).

Atalanta, on the other hand, host Athletic Bilbao at the same time.