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At a Glance

• The Chelsea forward hands Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• Atalanta the stronger side after the break and equalise through Gianluca Scamacca.
• Charles de Ketelaere scores a last-gasp decisive goal for the home side.
• Loss means Chelsea drop to 11th in the group stage of the tournament.
• The top eight qualify automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's chances of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockout stages were hit hard as Atalanta came from behind to triumph in Bergamo.

Each club entered this match with the same records in the league phase of this year's competition, having won, tied one, and lost to be on ten points.

For extended periods there was not much to separate them in this contest too, although Chelsea took the lead in the opening 45 minutes when Joao Pedro finished Reece James' cross.

But Atalanta always looked a danger going forwards, with ex- Charlton and Everton attacker causing problems for the defence.

Reece James fired wide in the after the break but Atalanta raised the pressure and justly levelled when former West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca a centering pass.

Alejandro Garnacho hammered a strong effort straight at the keeper but Atalanta got the winning goal in the closing stages when the Blues defenders backed off the midfielder, who made no mistake with a driven finish.

The visitors tried to rescue a draw late on but a brilliant stop by Marco Carnesecchi denied Joao Pedro.

The outcome means Chelsea slip out of the top eight—the positions that progress automatically for the next round—to 11th with two league phase games remaining.

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

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Form Persists

This was a hugely frustrating outcome for Chelsea as even a draw was keeping them well placed to secure the top-eight finish they need to bypass the uncertainty of the qualifying play-off round.

But they lost focus in their defensive duties with seven minutes remaining and their opponents capitalised completely.

The Italians are in good form at the moment so this was always going to be a difficult examination for the visitors, but they will be disappointed to be departing with no points after taking the early advantage.

But the wider issue is that this extends Chelsea's troubling streak of results in all competitions.

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

Too Many Rotations Turning Out to Be Costly?

Manager Enzo Maresca made five rotations for this game as he continued his strategy of moving players in and out of the starting 11.

The changes here came after he made the same number for the loss to Leeds and six for the draw with AFC Bournemouth prior to the trip to Atalanta.

The coach will see squad rotation as essential as he attempts to handle players' fitness and challenge both at home and abroad, but he maintained the core group of players stays the unchanged for crucial fixtures.

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

"If you look at the five alterations that we did compared to Bournemouth it may be different but it involves the eight or nine players playing in that match.

"The players who took to the field tonight are the individuals who feature in almost all the matches."

What's Next for These Sides?

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

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