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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a biting breeze off the waters of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side fighting for promotion, this presented all the ingredients of a challenging evening’s work for the visitors.

"We could have scored more but Hull are a good team and it was a tough tie; I’m very pleased with the display," he said. "Hull City is very special to me so it was great to get a good reception from the fans of fans. The application of the lads was excellent."

The Chelsea manager has this city dear to him, considering some of his family are from Hull and his successful spell in charge of the Championship club. This happy connection was extended with a magnificent performance from his squad, who ultimately sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Finishing Seals Comfortable Victory

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a two-goal lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about them going into this intriguing tie. The packed home crowd evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the challenge with ease.

The manager rang the changes, making seven of them to his starting lineup. The match could and maybe ought to have been decided earlier than it actually was, with both the Brazilian winger and Liam Delap guilty of spurning excellent chances to put Chelsea in front in the first half.

However, luckily for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a far more clinical frame of mind. He broke the deadlock with a marvellous distance strike, which acted as the catalyst for his team to take control of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had four, with the forward netting three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

The Forward's Response and Impact

The home side showed great fight throughout, but the better opportunities consistently fell to the visitors. Estêvão should have opened the deadlock when he went past goalkeeper the Hull stopper before inexplicably shooting over. The striker then had a similar nightmare incident in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a the goalkeeper's clearance which came back from the crossbar, and he started to celebrate thinking the ball had crossed the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was immensely instrumental from that point onward, providing three assists. The first was for the opening goal as his pass set up his teammate to finish from range. Shortly after the second half began, it was 2-0 as Neto's set-piece went directly in through the keeper's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Soon after the second goal, the tie was effectively ended as a magnificent dribble from Delap teed up his teammate to tap into an unguarded goal. Neto then completed his treble as Delap again played the decisive pass for the striker to coolly slot past a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening half-hour had long since forgotten. Their priority must now switch back to securing a promotion to the Premier League under their manager, who left out several key individuals with that aim in mind.

"In my opinion we deserved at least one goal but if we perform like this we will be in a very good situation in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the upcoming matches this can be a good example of how we must play."

There was great endeavour to the end, and they nearly claimed a late goal when a substitute hit a the upright in injury time. But this was the Blues' night, and another positive step forward for their recently-appointed head coach at a place he is familiar with very well.

FA Cup History Are Promising

The result made for an ultimately straightforward night's performance, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three previous times in this tournament in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to reach the showpiece. There is still done in that respect, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.