Maresca expresses worry following Atalantas comeback win against Chelsea
Enzo Maresca confessed to feeling anxious about Chelseas dip in form after Atalantas 2-1 triumph in the Champions League stretched the Blues winless streak to four games on Tuesday.
Joao Pedros inaugural Champions League strike gave Chelsea the lead during the opening period in Bergamo.
However the Blues faltered post halftime as ex West Ham forward Gianluca Scamacca netted the leveller and Charles De Ketelaere who assisted on Atalantas equaliser concluded his commanding performance with the decisive goal late on.
Chelsea struggled to contain the Belgian attacker De Ketelaere boasting six strikes and seven assists across his previous 12 Champions League outings.
From their standout 3-0 triumph versus Barcelona in the Champions League on November 25 Chelsea have endured four outings without success in any tournament.
Marescas squad in 11th position holds 10 points across six league phase fixtures and their pursuit of a top eight spot which secures direct entry to the knockout stage now hangs in the balance.
Chelseas remaining pair of fixtures occur in January hosting Pafos and visiting Napoli.
I remain constantly concerned. Accumulating just two points over four matches falls short of our standards and we must improve Maresca remarked.
In the initial half we led dominated and managed the match well. Once we let in the opening goal our grip loosened somewhat.
We missed several opportunities to extend to 2-0 and upon conceding the 1-1 the momentum shifted slightly.
We face games every other day. At one point it seemed we were labouring a touch. The focus now shifts to securing victory in the upcoming encounter.
Sitting third Atalanta have secured victories against Club Brugge Marseille Eintracht Frankfurt and Chelsea this campaign as they aim for a round of 16 position.
Maresca introduced five alterations from Saturdays goalless stalemate at Bournemouth in the Premier League sparing Cole Palmer following his comeback last weekend after a two month injury layoff.
Chelseas rising young talent Estevao who has notched three Champions League goals this term and shone against Barcelona found no starting berth.
Sluggish Chelsea
Marescas adjusted team almost conceded early within the first five minutes as Ademola Lookman dribbled into the box delivering a cross that glanced off Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez prior to being cleared away.
Lookman proved troublesome for Chelsea requiring a desperate clearance from Josh Acheampong to thwart the ex Everton player with the follow up effort from Marten de Roon sailing just above the bar.
Chelsea capitalised on that reprieve to go ahead in the 25th minute.
As Joao Pedro cleverly finished Reece James cross from close range the strike was first ruled out for offside only for VAR intervention to validate the Chelsea strikers effort.
This marked merely Joao Pedros third goal for Chelsea in his past 16 appearances across all competitions.
James ought to have made it two when he blazed over from the areas periphery shortly after the restart.
A vital error that Atalanta exploited to level in the 55th minute.
De Ketelaeres delivery to the back post left Chelseas backline exposed allowing Scamacca to time his arrival impeccably for a near post header.
Scamacca nearly capitalised on Chelseas poor tracking once more soon after with a flicked header that Sanchez tipped away acrobatically.
Maresca countered Chelseas lacklustre showing by introducing Alejandro Garnacho who promptly drew a stop from Marco Carnesecchi.
Yet Chelsea remained vulnerable defensively and De Ketelaere claimed the winner in the 83rd minute surging forward unopposed to the boxes edge before unleashing a fierce effort that took a deflection off Marc Cucurella en route to goal.