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Key Moments

• The Chelsea forward gives Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the better side after the interval and equalise through the striker.
• The Belgian attacker nets a last-gasp winner for the home side.
• The defeat means Chelsea drop to 11th in the league phase of the tournament.
• The top eight qualify automatically for the knockouts.

Chelsea's chances of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockout stages were hit hard as Atalanta overturned a deficit to claim victory in their home stadium.

Both sides entered this match with identical points tallies in the initial stage of this year's competition, having secured three victories, tied one, and suffered one defeat to be on 10 points.

For much of the game there was little to distinguish them in this encounter too, although Chelsea went ahead in the opening 45 minutes when the Brazilian converted Reece James' cross.

But Atalanta remained a danger going on the attack, with former Premier League attacker Ademola Lookman issues for the defence.

Reece James fired wide in the second half but Atalanta increased the pressure and rightfully equalised when former West Ham United striker nodded home a cross.

Alejandro Garnacho hammered a powerful shot straight at the keeper but Atalanta secured the decisive strike late on when the Blues defenders retreated from the midfielder, who took full advantage with a driven shot.

Chelsea attempted to salvage a draw in stoppage time but a excellent save by Marco Carnesecchi denied Pedro.

The final score means Chelsea fall out of the top eight—the positions that qualify automatically for the next round—to eleventh with two group stage games left to play.

The Bergamo club, in contrast, jump up to third place, three points ahead of the Londoners.

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Run Persists

This was a extremely frustrating outcome for Chelsea as even a draw was keeping them in a strong position to secure the top-eight position they require to avoid the uncertainty of the qualifying play-off round.

But they lacked concentration in their defensive duties with seven minutes remaining and their opponents took full advantage.

The Italians are in good form at the moment so this was always going to be a difficult test for the Blues, but they will be disappointed to be leaving with no points after securing the early advantage.

But the broader context is that this continues Chelsea's troubling run of results in all tournaments.

Since beating Barcelona 3-0 at the close of November they are now without a win in their last four outings.

Excessive Changes Turning Out to Be Costly?

Manager Enzo Enzo Maresca enacted five alterations for this match as he persisted with his policy of moving players in and out of the starting lineup.

The rotations here followed after he implemented the same number for the defeat to Leeds and six for the tie with Bournemouth prior to the journey to Atalanta.

The coach will view squad rotation as necessary as he attempts to manage players' minutes and compete both at home and abroad, but he insisted the core group of players stays the unchanged for important fixtures.

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

"If you see the five alterations that we did relative to Bournemouth it is a change but it is the eight or nine players who played in that match.

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

Up Next for These Teams?

Chelsea's next Champions League fixture sees them welcome Pafos on Wednesday, 21 January (20:00 GMT).

The Italian team, on the other hand, host Athletic Club at the identical kick-off time.