Atalanta vs. Chelsea: Preview, Predictions and Lineups
Chelsea will hope to climb closer to the top of the Champions League table when they travel to face an inconsistent Atalanta side on Tuesday.
The Blues are far from the most consistent outfit themselves. After a dazzling 3–0 win over Barcelona and an impressive draw with Arsenal, a brutal 3–1 defeat to Leeds United and a stalemate draw with Bournemouth have brought Enzo Maresca’s side crashing back to earth.
In Europe, things are going reasonably well. Chelsea enter the matchweek sitting seventh in the standings, good enough for automatic qualification but level on points with Tuesday’s opponents in 10th.
Atalanta have three wins from their first five Champions League games, but that does not tell the full story about Raffaele Palladino’s side, who have just three Serie A wins in 14 games and have failed to win nine of their last 10 outings domestically.
Ahead of a tense meeting between two sides believing they can get the win, here is Sports Illustrated’s preview of Atalanta vs. Chelsea.
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What Time Does Atalanta vs. Chelsea Kick-Off?
- Location: Bergamo, Italy
- Stadium: Stadio di Bergamo
- Date: Tuesday, Dec. 9
- Kick-off Time: 8.00 p.m. GMT / 3.00 p.m. ET / 12.00 p.m. PT
- Referee: Alejandro José Hernández Hernández (ESP)
- VAR: César Soto Grado (ESP)
Atalanta vs. Chelsea Head-to-Head Record
This will be the first competitive meeting between Atalanta and Chelsea.
Current Form (All Competitions)
Atalanta | Chelsea |
|---|---|
Hellas Verona 3–1 Atalanta - 12/06/25 | Bournemouth 0–0 Chelsea - 12/06/25 |
Atalanta 4–0 Genoa - 12/03/25 | Leeds 3–1 Chelsea - 12/03/25 |
Atalanta 2–0 Fiorentina - 11/30/25 | Chelsea 1–1 Arsenal - 11/30/25 |
Frankfurt 0–3 Atalanta - 11/26/25 | Chelsea 3–0 Barcelona - 11/25/25 |
Napoli 3–1 Atalanta - 11/22/25 | Burnley 0–2 Chelsea - 11/22/25 |
How to Watch Atalanta vs. Chelsea on TV, Live Stream
Country | TV Channel/Live Stream |
|---|---|
United States | Paramount+, DAZN USA |
United Kingdom | TNT Sports 2, discovery+, Prime Video UK (with discovery+ subscription) |
Canada | DAZN Canada, fuboTV Canada |
Mexico | Max Mexico, Space Mexico |
Atalanta Team News
Kamaldeen Sulemana and Mitchel Bakker are two continued absences for Atalanta, with Palladino blessed with plenty of options to rotate his squad.
The Atalanta squad includes two former Chelsea players. Full back Davide Zappacosta will hope for another start on the left but midfielder Mario Pašalić, who spent six years at Chelsea without making a single appearance, has struggled for minutes since Palladino’s arrival in November.
Atalanta Predicted Lineup vs. Chelsea
Atalanta predicted lineup vs. Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Carnesecchi; Kossounou, Hien, Djimsiti; Bellanova, De Roon, Ederson, Zappacosta; De Ketelaere, Lookman; Scamacca.
Chelsea Team News
Striker Liam Delap is the newest arrival in Chelsea’s treatment room after suffering a nasty shoulder injury which is expected to keep him out for the best part of two months. He joins Roméo Lavia, Levi Colwill and Dário Essugo on the sidelines, while Mykhailo Mudryk remains unavailable.
The positive news for Chelsea is the expected return of midfielder Moisés Caicedo. The Ecuadorian has served two of the three games of his suspension following his red card against Arsenal, but the ban only applies to domestic matches and so Caicedo will be free to make his return here.
Cole Palmer was not spotted in open training on Monday but is not thought to have suffered an injury setback and may be rested as part of his gradual return.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs. Atalanta
Chelsea predicted lineup vs. Atalanta (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Gusto, Acheampong, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Santos; Estêvão, Fernández, Gittens; Pedro.
Atalanta vs. Chelsea Score Prediction
It is abundantly clear that you can never know what you are going to get from either of these sides. Chelsea’s destruction of Barcelona was as much of a statement as the calamity against Leeds, while Atalanta’s miserable Serie A form was countered by an excellent win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
Chelsea’s ceiling does feel higher and the return of Caicedo in midfield represents a significant boost for the Blues, who will fancy their chances of victory against an Atalanta defence which does not inspire any real confidence.
Maresca does boast strength in depth and will believe his squad has enough options to fight to victory here, even if they are made to wait until late in the evening.
Prediction: Atalanta 1–2 Chelsea
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