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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a biting breeze from the waters of the Humber Estuary, alongside a resolute home side pushing hard for promotion, this had all the makings of a challenging night's task for Chelsea.

"We could have added to our tally but the opposition are a good team and it was a difficult fixture; I am very pleased with the display," the manager stated. "Hull City is very special to me so it was great to get a positive reception from the fans of fans. The attitude of the players was excellent."

Liam Rosenior holds this place close to his heart, considering part of his relatives hail from Hull and his successful period in charge of the Championship club. This happy connection was extended with a magnificent performance from his team, who ultimately strolled into the fifth round of the famous old competition.

Clinical Edge Seals Comprehensive Win

Three days removed from letting slip a two-goal advantage in the Premier League, there was a sniff of vulnerability about them going into this intriguing cup clash. The capacity Hull support evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the task with ease.

Rosenior made alterations, enacting seven of them to his starting lineup. The tie could and maybe should have been settled earlier than it actually was, with two the Brazilian winger and Liam Delap at fault for missing excellent opportunities to put their side ahead in the opening period.

However, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a far more clinical frame of mind. He broke the scoring with a spectacular distance strike, which proved to be the catalyst for Chelsea to take command of proceedings. By full time, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting a trio of them for a superb hat-trick.

The Forward's Response and Influence

The home side showed plenty of fight all game, but the better opportunities consistently fell to the visitors. The winger should have broken the scoring when he rounded goalkeeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a similar nightmare incident in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a the goalkeeper's kick which came back from the bar, and he began to celebrate thinking the ball had gone over the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had responded to avert the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was immensely instrumental from there on out, providing 3 key passes. The opening was for the first goal as his through ball set up his teammate to score from range. Six minutes after the second half began, it was 2-0 as the forward's corner went directly in through the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Attention Turns

Soon after Neto’s second goal, the match was effectively ended as a magnificent run from Delap laid on his teammate to tap into an empty net. Neto then completed his treble as Delap again delivered the crucial ball for the attacker to calmly slot by a stranded goalkeeper.

By that stage, the work Hull had put in in the opening half-hour had been forgotten. Their priority must now switch back to achieving a return to the top division under their manager, who left out several first-choice individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we earned 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 games this can be a good example of how we must play."

Hull showed great effort to the end, and they nearly claimed a late goal when a substitute struck a the upright in injury time. But this was Chelsea’s evening, and another positive step forward for their recently-appointed manager at a stadium he knows intimately.

FA Cup History Look Good

That resulted in an in the end straightforward night's performance, and the cup competition signs are good from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three other occasions in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to make the showpiece. Much still done in that respect, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.