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At a Glance

• The Chelsea forward gives Chelsea the lead in the first half.
• The Italian outfit the stronger side after the interval and equalise through the striker.
• Charles de Ketelaere grabs a late decisive goal for the hosts.
• Loss means Chelsea drop to 11th in the league phase of the Champions League.
• The top eight qualify automatically for the last 16.

Chelsea's ambitions of securing a place automatically for the Champions League knockouts were suffered a setback as Atalanta overturned a deficit to triumph in Bergamo.

Both sides entered this game with matching records in the initial stage of this year's tournament, having won, drawn, and suffered one defeat to be on ten points.

For large parts there was not much to separate them in this encounter too, even though Chelsea took the lead in the first half when Joao Pedro converted the captain's cross.

But Atalanta always looked a threat going forwards, with former Charlton and Everton attacker causing problems for the backline.

James fired wide in the second half but the home team increased the pressure and deservedly drew level when ex-West Ham striker headed in a centering pass.

Alejandro Garnacho drove a powerful shot straight at the keeper but they secured the decisive strike late on when the Blues defenders backed off the midfielder, who took full advantage with a driven finish.

Chelsea tried to rescue a point late on but a excellent save by Marco Carnesecchi denied Joao Pedro.

The result means Chelsea drop out of the top eight—the positions that progress automatically for the next round—to eleventh with two group stage fixtures remaining.

Atalanta, meanwhile, leap up to third place, three points ahead of the Londoners.

Blues Breakdown - Worrying Run Continues

This was a hugely disappointing outcome for Chelsea as even a point was leaving them well placed to secure the top eight finish they require to bypass the lottery of the qualifying play-off round.

But they lost focus in their defensive duties with seven minutes left on the clock and their opponents took full advantage.

The Italian side are in rich vein of form at the moment so this was always going to be a difficult test for the visitors, but they will be annoyed to be leaving with no points after taking the lead.

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

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

Excessive Changes Proving Costly?

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca enacted five rotations for this game as he continued his run of rotating players in and out of the starting lineup.

The changes here followed after he made the identical amount for the loss to Leeds and six for the draw with AFC Bournemouth prior to the journey to Atalanta.

The coach will see rotation as essential as he tries to manage players' fitness and compete both at domestically and in Europe, but he maintained the central contingent of players remains the unchanged for important fixtures.

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

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

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

What's Next for These Sides?

Chelsea's next Champions League game 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 Club at the same time.