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Amid freezing rain, snow, and a biting wind off the banks of the Humber Estuary, alongside a determined home side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a difficult evening’s work for Chelsea.

"We could have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough fixture; I am very pleased with the display," the manager stated. "This club is very special to me so it was nice to get a positive reception from the fans of fans. The attitude of the lads was superb."

The Rosenior holds this city dear to him, considering some of his relatives are from Hull and his enjoyable period in management of the Championship club. This positive association was extended with a commanding display from his squad, who in the end sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Finishing Seals Comfortable Victory

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a 2-0 advantage in the league, there was a hint of fragility about Chelsea going into this intriguing tie. The packed home support evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the task with ease.

Rosenior made alterations, making seven of them to his starting lineup. The match might and maybe should have been settled earlier than it eventually was, with two Estêvão Willian and the forward at fault for spurning glorious chances to put Chelsea in front in the opening period.

But, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical mood. He broke the scoring with a marvellous long-range strike, which acted as the spark for his team to assume control of the match. By the final whistle, they had four, with Neto netting three of them for a superb hat-trick.

Delap's Response and Influence

Hull displayed great fight all game, but the better opportunities consistently fell Chelsea’s way. Estêvão ought to have opened the scoring when he rounded goalkeeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably shooting over. Delap then had a comparable horror incident in front of goal against his old team.

He blocked a the goalkeeper's kick which bounced off the crossbar, and Delap began to run away thinking the ball had crossed the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he realised, Hull's backline had responded to avert the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that miss, but he was hugely instrumental from that point onward, providing 3 assists. The first was for the first goal as his through ball set up his teammate to score from range. Six minutes after the restart, it was 2-0 as the forward's corner went directly in through the keeper's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Seven minutes after the second, the tie was put beyond doubt as a dazzling dribble from the forward teed up Estêvão to tap into an empty net. The hat-trick hero then finished his hat-trick as Delap again played the decisive pass for the striker to calmly slot past a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening half-hour had long since erased. Their priority must now return to securing a promotion to the top division under Sergej Jakirovic, who rested a number of key players with that goal in mind.

"I think we deserved at least one goal but if we perform like this we will be in a very good situation in the Championship," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the upcoming matches this can be a good example of how we should play."

There was great endeavour to the end, and they almost claimed a late goal when a substitute struck a post in stoppage time. But this was the Blues' evening, and another encouraging step forward for their new manager at a stadium he knows intimately.

FA Cup History Look Good

The result resulted in an ultimately straightforward evening’s work, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three other times in this competition in the past ten years and every single time, they have progressed to reach the final. Much remains to be done in that respect, but this was another significant positive for Rosenior.