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At a Glance

• The Chelsea forward gives Chelsea the advantage in the opening period.
• The Italian outfit the better side after the interval and draw level through Gianluca Scamacca.
• The Belgian attacker nets a last-gasp winner for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea slide to 11th in the group stage of the Champions League.
• The top eight progress automatically for the knockout phase.

The London club's chances of qualifying automatically for the Champions League knockouts were hit hard as their Italian opponents fought back to triumph in Bergamo.

The two teams entered this fixture with the same records in the initial stage of this season's competition, having won, drawn, and suffered one defeat to be on 10 points.

For much of the game there was little to distinguish them in this contest too, although Chelsea got their noses in front in the first half when the Brazilian turned in the captain's delivery.

But The Serie A side remained a danger going on the attack, with ex- Premier League attacker creating problems for the backline.

Reece James shot wide in the second half but Atalanta increased the intensity and justly levelled when ex-West Ham striker headed in a cross.

Alejandro Garnacho drove a powerful shot straight at the keeper but Atalanta scored the decisive strike in the closing stages when the Blues defence retreated from the midfielder, who seized the opportunity with a powerful finish.

Chelsea tried to rescue a draw late on but a excellent stop by Marco Carnesecchi kept out Joao Pedro.

The result means Chelsea fall out of the top eight—the positions that progress automatically for the knockouts—to 11th with two league phase fixtures remaining.

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

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Form Persists

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

But they lost focus in defence with seven minutes remaining 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 frustrated to be leaving with nothing after securing the early advantage.

But the wider issue is that this continues Chelsea's worrying streak of form in all tournaments.

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

Too Many Rotations Turning Out to Be Costly?

Chelsea boss Maresca enacted five alterations for this game as he persisted with his strategy of moving players in and out of the first team.

The changes here followed after he implemented the same number for the defeat to Leeds and six for the draw with Bournemouth prior to the journey to Bergamo.

Maresca will see squad rotation as essential as he attempts to handle players' minutes and compete both at home and in Europe, but he stated the key nucleus of players remains the unchanged for important games.

"I think in this match [in] the first XI we had eight or nine players who played against Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, and the Gunners," he said.

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

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

What Next for These Clubs?

Chelsea's next European game sees them host Pafos on Wednesday, 21 January (20:00 GMT).

The Italian team, on the other hand, are at home to Athletic Club at the same time.