Atalanta and Chelsea will meet for the first time in European competition, while the Italian side have only won one of their previous seven games against English sides in the UEFA Champions League (D3 L3).
This will be Chelsea’s first away game against an Italian opponent since October 2022, in a 2-0 victory away to Milan. Prior to that game, the Blues had only won one of their first 10 matches away to Italian sides in the UEFA Champions League (D3 L6): 4-0 v Lazio in November 2003.
Atalanta have kept eight clean sheets in their 15 UEFA Champions League games since the start of last season. Among teams to have played in both campaigns, only Internazionale (55% - 11/20) have a higher clean sheet rate than Atalanta (53%).
Chelsea are winless in their last four away games in the UEFA Champions League (D1 L3), last going five in a row without a victory in February 2012 (5). After a loss to Bayern Munich (1-3) and a draw versus Qarabag (2-2), Enzo Maresca could become just the third Chelsea manager to not win any of his first three away matches in charge in the competition, after André Villas-Boas (2011-12) and Luiz Felipe Scolari (2008-09).
All six of Atalanta’s UEFA Champions League goals have come in the second half of games, with only them and Kairat Almaty failing to score in the opening 45 minutes this term. Atalanta scored three goals in a five-minute second half spell at Eintracht Frankfurt last time out.
This will be Chelsea’s 100th away game in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League. The Blues have 41 wins in 99 to date, already the most by any English side through their first 100 matches, and second only to Barcelona (44) overall.
Only Man City (91.5%) and PSG (91.2%) have a higher passing accuracy than Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League this season, with the Blues’ 89.3% their highest on record (since 2003-04) in a single campaign in the competition.
18-year-old Estêvão is Chelsea’s top scorer in the UEFA Champions League this season with three goals. It’s the joint-most goals a teenager has scored for a Premier League side in a single campaign in the competition, level with Wayne Rooney in 2004-05.
Charles De Ketelaere has been involved in 11 goals in his last 11 UEFA Champions League appearances for Atalanta (5 goals, 6 assists), despite a recent run of six games without a goal or assist in the competition (ended with two involvements against Eintracht Frankfurt last time out).
Moisés Caicedo has completed 91.7% of his passes made under high-intensity pressure in the UEFA Champions League this season (111/121); the third-highest completion rate by a midfielder (min. 100 attempted), only behind Frenkie de Jong (94%) and Vitinha (91.9%).