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Amid freezing rain, flurries, and a biting breeze off the waters of the Humber, combined with a determined Hull City side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a challenging evening’s task for Chelsea.

"We might have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough tie; I’m delighted with the display," he said. "This club means a lot to me so it was nice to get a positive reception from the fans of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

The Rosenior has this place close to his heart, considering part of his relatives hail from Hull and his successful spell in charge of the Championship club. This positive association was extended with a commanding display from his team, who in the end sauntered into the fifth round of the famous old competition.

Clinical Edge Secures Comprehensive Victory

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a 2-0 lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of fragility about them going into this potentially tricky cup clash. The capacity home crowd clearly sensed it too, but the London side handled the challenge perfectly.

Rosenior made alterations, enacting seven of them to his XI. The tie could and perhaps ought to have been settled long before it actually was, with two the Brazilian winger and Liam Delap at fault for missing excellent opportunities to put their side in front in the opening period.

However, luckily for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He broke the scoring with a marvellous distance strike, which proved to be the spark for his team to take command of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting three of them for a superb three-goal haul.

The Forward's Redemption and Impact

Hull showed plenty of fight throughout, but the better opportunities consistently fell to the visitors. The winger ought to have broken the deadlock when he went past keeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably shooting over. Delap then had a comparable horror incident in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a the goalkeeper's clearance which came back from the bar, and he started to celebrate thinking the ball had gone over the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the threat.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely instrumental from there on out, registering three key passes. The first was for the first goal as his pass set up his teammate to score from range. Shortly after the second half began, it was two as Neto's set-piece went directly in under Phillips's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Focus Shifts

Seven minutes after the second goal, the match was put beyond doubt as a magnificent dribble from Delap laid on his teammate to tap into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then completed his treble as the provider once again played the crucial ball for the attacker to calmly convert past a stranded goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had been erased. Their priority must now switch back to achieving a return to the Premier League under their manager, who rested several first-choice individuals with that aim in mind.

"In my opinion 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 must play."

There was plenty of endeavour to the end, and they nearly claimed a late goal when Lewis Koumas struck a the upright in injury time. But this was the Blues' night, and another positive step forward for their new manager at a stadium he is familiar with very well.

FA Cup Omens Look Promising

That resulted in an ultimately routine evening’s work, and the FA Cup-shaped signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three previous times in this tournament in the past ten years and every single time, they have gone on to make the final. There is remains to be work in that respect, but this was another significant positive for the Chelsea boss.