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Against a backdrop of sleet, flurries, and a biting breeze off the waters of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side pushing hard for promotion, this had all the ingredients of a challenging night's task for Chelsea.

"We could have scored more but Hull are a good team and it was a tough fixture; I’m delighted with the display," the manager stated. "Hull City means a lot to me so it was nice to get a good welcome from the fans of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

The Rosenior has this city dear to him, given part of his relatives hail from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Tigers. His happy connection continued with a magnificent performance from his squad, who in the end sauntered into the fifth round of the famous old competition.

Deadly Edge Secures Comprehensive Win

Three days after surrendering a two-goal lead in the league, there was a sniff of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this intriguing cup clash. The packed Hull crowd clearly sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the challenge with ease.

The manager made alterations, making multiple of them to his XI. The match might and maybe ought to have been decided earlier than it actually was, with two Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap at fault for missing glorious opportunities to put their side ahead in the first half.

However, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He broke the deadlock with a marvellous long-range effort, which proved to be the catalyst for Chelsea to take control of proceedings. By full time, they had four, with the forward scoring three of them for a superb three-goal haul.

The Forward's Response and Influence

The home side showed great spirit all game, but the better opportunities consistently came to the visitors. Estêvão ought to have opened the scoring when he went past goalkeeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably shooting over. Delap then had a similar nightmare incident in front of goal against his former club.

He deflected a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and he began to celebrate believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely instrumental from there on out, providing three key passes. The first was for the opening goal as his pass set up Neto to finish from outside the box. Six minutes after the restart, it was two as the forward's set-piece went straight in under Phillips's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Focus Turns

Seven minutes after Neto’s second goal, the match was effectively ended as a magnificent dribble from the forward laid on Estêvão to tap into an empty net. Neto then finished his treble as Delap again delivered the crucial pass for the attacker to coolly convert past a stranded goalkeeper.

At that point, the effort Hull had put in in the first thirty minutes had been forgotten. Their focus must now switch back to securing a return to the top division under their manager, who rested several first-choice individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we deserved at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong position in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the next matches this can be a good example of how we should play."

There was plenty of endeavour to the final whistle, and they almost claimed a late goal when a substitute struck a the upright in injury time. But this was Chelsea’s evening, and another positive stride for their new manager at a stadium he is familiar with intimately.

Cup History Are Promising

The result made for an ultimately routine night's work, and the FA Cup-shaped omens are positive from here for the winners. They have played Hull on three previous occasions in this tournament in the last decade and every single time, they have gone on to reach the showpiece. Much remains to be work in that regard, but this was another huge tick for the Chelsea boss.