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Amid sleet, snow, and a biting wind off the waters of the Humber, combined with a resolute home side fighting for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a difficult evening’s work for Chelsea.

"We might have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough fixture; I am very pleased with the performance," he said. "Hull City means a lot to me so it was great to get a positive reception from both sets of fans. The attitude of the lads was excellent."

Liam Chelsea manager has this place dear to him, given part of his relatives hail from Hull and his enjoyable period in management of the Tigers. This happy association was extended with a commanding display from his team, who ultimately sauntered into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Edge Secures Comfortable Win

Seventy-two hours removed from surrendering a two-goal advantage in the Premier League, there was a sniff of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this potentially tricky tie. The capacity Hull crowd evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the task with ease.

The manager rang the changes, making multiple of them to his starting lineup. The match could and perhaps should have been decided earlier than it actually was, with two the Brazilian winger and the forward at fault for spurning glorious opportunities to put Chelsea in front in the opening period.

However, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more ruthless frame of mind. He opened the scoring with a spectacular long-range strike, which proved to be the catalyst for Chelsea to take command of the match. By full time, they had 4 goals, with the forward netting three of them for a superb three-goal haul.

Delap's Response and Influence

The home side displayed plenty of spirit throughout, but the better chances consistently fell Chelsea’s way. The winger should have broken the deadlock when he rounded goalkeeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably firing over. The striker then had a similar horror incident in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and Delap began to celebrate believing the ball had gone over the line. It had not, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had reacted to clear the threat.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely instrumental from there on out, registering three assists. The first was for the opening goal as his through ball teed up his teammate to finish from outside the box. Shortly after the second half began, it was two as Neto's corner went directly in under the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Attention Shifts

Seven minutes after Neto’s second, the tie was put beyond doubt as a dazzling dribble from the forward teed up his teammate to slide into an unguarded goal. Neto then completed his treble as Delap once again played the crucial pass for the striker to coolly slot past a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had been erased. Their priority must now return to achieving a return to the top division under Sergej Jakirovic, who rested several first-choice individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we earned at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong situation in the league," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the upcoming games this can be a positive example of how we should play."

Hull showed plenty of endeavour to the end, and they nearly claimed a consolation when a substitute struck a the upright in injury time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another encouraging step forward for their recently-appointed manager at a place he knows intimately.

Cup Omens Are Good

That made for an in the end straightforward evening’s performance, and the FA Cup-shaped omens are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three other occasions in this tournament in the last decade and every single time, they have gone on to make the showpiece. There is still done in that respect, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.