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Key Moments

• The Chelsea forward hands Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the stronger side after the interval and equalise through the striker.
• Charles de Ketelaere scores a last-gasp decisive goal for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea fall to 11th in the group stage of the tournament.
• The top eight progress automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's hopes of securing a place automatically for the European Cup knockout stages were suffered a setback as Atalanta came from behind to win in their home stadium.

Each club 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 have accrued 10 points.

For extended periods there was not much to separate them in this encounter too, although Chelsea went ahead in the first half when the Brazilian finished Reece James' delivery.

But The Serie A side consistently appeared a danger going on the attack, with former Premier League attacker causing issues for the backline.

Reece James shot wide in the after the break but Atalanta increased the intensity and rightfully levelled when ex-West Ham striker nodded home a cross.

The winger hammered a powerful shot straight at the keeper but they secured the winning goal in the closing stages when the Chelsea defenders retreated from the midfielder, who seized the opportunity with a driven strike.

The visitors attempted to salvage a draw in stoppage time but a brilliant save by the Atalanta goalkeeper denied Pedro.

The final score means Chelsea fall out of the top eight—the positions that qualify automatically for the knockouts—to 11th with two group stage fixtures left to play.

The Bergamo club, meanwhile, leap up to third place, three points ahead of the Londoners.

Chelsea Analysis - Worrying Run Continues

This was a hugely disappointing result for Chelsea as even a point 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 left on the clock and Atalanta seized the moment.

The Italian side are in fine fettle at the moment so this was always going to be a tough examination for the Blues, but they will be frustrated to be leaving with no points after securing the lead.

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

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

Excessive Changes Turning Out to Be Costly?

Manager Enzo Enzo Maresca made five rotations for this match as he continued his run of rotating players in and out of the starting lineup.

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

The coach will view squad rotation as essential as he tries to handle players' fitness and challenge both at home and in Europe, but he maintained the core group of players remains the same for key fixtures.

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

"If you see the five changes that we made relative to the previous game it is a change but it is the same eight or nine players who played Barcelona.

"The players who played this evening are the individuals playing almost all the matches."

What's Next for These Teams?

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

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