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Amid freezing rain, flurries, and a swirling breeze from the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a resolute Hull City side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a challenging evening’s task for the visitors.

"We could have scored more but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough fixture; I am delighted with the display," the manager stated. "Hull City means a lot to me so it was nice to get a good reception from the fans of supporters. The attitude of the lads was excellent."

Liam Rosenior holds this place close to his heart, considering part of his relatives hail from Hull and his enjoyable spell in charge of the Tigers. His positive association was extended with a commanding performance from his team, who in the end sauntered into the next round of the famous old competition.

Deadly Finishing Seals Comfortable Win

Seventy-two hours removed from letting slip a 2-0 lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this intriguing cup clash. The capacity home crowd clearly sensed it too, but Rosenior's men handled the challenge with ease.

The manager rang the changes, making seven of them to his starting lineup. The match might and maybe ought to have been decided long before it eventually was, with two the Brazilian winger and Liam Delap at fault for missing glorious opportunities to put Chelsea in front in the first half.

However, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He opened the deadlock with a spectacular long-range effort, which acted as the spark for Chelsea to assume control of the match. By full time, they had four, with the forward netting a trio of them for a superb three-goal haul.

The Forward's Response and Impact

Hull showed plenty of spirit all game, but the better chances consistently fell to the visitors. Estêvão should have opened the deadlock when he went past keeper the Hull stopper before inexplicably shooting over. The striker then had a comparable nightmare moment in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a Phillips's clearance which bounced back from the crossbar, and Delap began to celebrate believing the ball had gone over the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he understood, Hull's backline had responded to avert the threat.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was immensely instrumental from that point onward, registering three assists. The first was for the first goal as his pass set up Neto to score from outside the box. Six minutes after the second half began, it was two as Neto's set-piece went straight in through the keeper's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Soon after the second, the match was put beyond doubt as a magnificent run from Delap laid on Estêvão 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 coolly convert past a helpless goalkeeper.

At that point, the effort Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had been erased. Their priority must now switch back to achieving a promotion to the Premier League under Sergej Jakirovic, who rested a number of first-choice players with that aim in mind.

"In my opinion we deserved at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong position in the Championship," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next matches this can be a good lesson of how we must play."

Hull showed great effort to the final whistle, and they nearly claimed a consolation when Lewis Koumas hit a the upright in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another encouraging stride for their recently-appointed head coach at a stadium he knows very well.

Cup Omens Look Promising

The result resulted in an ultimately straightforward evening’s work, and the FA Cup-shaped signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three previous occasions in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to reach the showpiece. There is still work in that respect, but this was another significant positive for Rosenior.