Preview: Atalanta BC vs Chelsea - prediction, team news, lineups

Boasting identical records after five matchdays of the 2025-26 Champions League, Atalanta BC and Chelsea scrap it out in Tuesday's intriguing league-phase contest in Bergamo.

Both the Blues and La Dea have collected 10 points from 15 on offer, although the Premier League side sit three places better off courtesy of a superior goal difference.

Match preview

Humiliating Hansi Flick and his hopeless high line during Barcelona's visit to Stamford Bridge, Chelsea carved their way through a disjointed Blaugrana backline to hit the reigning La Liga champions for three without reply on UCL matchday five.

Benefitting from Ronald Araujo's red card and Barcelona's nonsensical defensive strategy in that 3-0 success, Enzo Maresca's men comfortably made it three wins from their last four Champions League games to enhance their top-eight credentials.

The Blues' seventh-placed ranking would suffice for direct entry into the last 16 without the need for a two-legged playoff; while that outcome is not yet guaranteed, the visitors will head to Bergamo with fond memories of Italian showdowns.

Indeed, Chelsea have won their last three European games against Serie A sides while keeping a clean sheet every time, but since tearing Barcelona to shreds in the English capital, the Conference League holders have hit a painful plateau.

Maresca's men have only claimed two points from three Premier League games following the beating of the Blaugrana, a miserable run that includes a 3-1 loss to Leeds United and a forgettable goalless draw with Bournemouth at the weekend.

In strikingly similar fashion to their blue-clad visitors, Atalanta have amassed 10 points from the last 12 on offer in the Champions League after succumbing to an opening defeat to reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain, keeping three clean sheets along the way.

Raffaele Palladino most recently masterminded a 3-0 trouncing of Bundesliga powerhouses Eintracht Frankfurt away from home, which succeeded a gritty 1-0 victory at Marseille and uninspiring goalless draw with Slavia Prague.

While Atalanta share Chelsea's 10-point total, La Dea have scored 50% fewer goals than the Club World Cup winners and are therefore outside the automatic last-16 spots in 10th place, but one positive result could propel them into the coveted top eight positions.

As is the case with their visitors, though, Atalanta also go into matchday six on the back of a domestic setback, as their three-game winning run across all competitions came to an end in a shock 3-1 Serie A loss to Hellas Verona on Saturday.

Formerly known for their goal-happy tendencies under Gian Piero Gasperini, Atalanta's fall from grace sees them occupy a dismal 12th place in the Serie A rankings, but the Champions League has at least offered a small slice of respite this season.

Atalanta BC Champions League form:

Atalanta BC form (all competitions):

Chelsea Champions League form:

Chelsea form (all competitions):

Team News

Currently missing the influential Moises Caicedo in the Premier League due to suspension, Chelsea will have the Ecuadorian midfielder back available for the meeting with Atalanta, so do not be surprised to see Reece James rested.

On a more sour note, striker Liam Delap sustained a potentially serious shoulder injury in the draw with Bournemouth on Saturday, and the Englishman joins Romeo Lavia (thigh), Levi Colwill (knee), Dario Essugo (thigh) and Mykhaylo Mudryk (doping suspension) on the visitors' absentee list.

Interestingly, Marc Guiu was summoned to step in for Delap over the weekend, but Joao Pedro is a more likely starter up front on Tuesday, when Cole Palmer may be demoted to the bench for load management reasons.

Atalanta came out of their defeat to Hellas Verona with no worries on the injury front, but Kamaldeen Sulemana (muscle) and Mitchel Bakker (ACL) are unavailable this week.

Saturday's horror show has left Palladino with some critical selection calls to make on Tuesday, although one likely change should see Gianluca Scamacca - scorer of Atalanta's consolation in Verona - displace Nikola Krstovic up front.

Ex-Chelsea defender Davide Zappacosta may also miss out on a reunion with his former employers - at least from the first whistle - as Nicola Zalewski is an alternative left-sided option.

Atalanta BC possible starting lineup:

Carnesecchi; Kossounou, Hien, Djimsiti; Bellanova, Ederson, Pasalic, Zalewski; De Ketelaere, Lookman; Scamacca

Chelsea possible starting lineup:

Sanchez; Gusto, Acheampong, Chalobah, Hato; Caicedo, Santos; Estevao, Fernandez, Neto; Pedro

We say: Atalanta BC 1-2 Chelsea

The return of Caicedo - and a refreshed Caicedo at that - adds a new dimension to this Chelsea squad, who also possess plentiful options for change in the attacking areas.

Atalanta's domestic struggles have not translated into European woes recently, but Palladino's backline is too inconsistent to back with any true confidence, so a narrow Blues victory is a likely outcome.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.