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Amid freezing rain, snow, and a biting wind from the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side fighting for promotion, this had all the ingredients of a challenging night's work for the visitors.

"We could have added to our tally but Hull are a good team and it was a tough fixture; I’m very pleased with the display," he said. "Hull City is very special to me so it was great to get a good welcome from both sets of supporters. The attitude of the players was excellent."

The Rosenior holds this city dear to him, given some of his family hail from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Championship club. This positive association continued with a magnificent performance from his squad, who ultimately sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Finishing Seals Comprehensive Win

Three days after letting slip a two-goal lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this intriguing cup clash. The packed Hull crowd clearly felt it too, but the London side navigated the challenge perfectly.

The manager made alterations, enacting 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 Liam Delap guilty of missing excellent chances to put Chelsea ahead in the opening period.

But, fortunately for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a far more clinical frame of mind. He opened 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 four, with Neto netting three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

Delap's Redemption and Influence

Hull showed great fight throughout, but the clearer opportunities always came to the visitors. The winger ought to have broken the scoring when he rounded goalkeeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a comparable horror incident in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and he started to run away believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had responded to avert the threat.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely instrumental from that point onward, providing three assists. The opening was for the first goal as his pass set up Neto to finish from outside the box. Six minutes after the second half began, it was two as Neto's corner went directly in under the keeper's legs.

Contest Sealed and Focus Shifts

Seven minutes after Neto’s second, the match was put beyond doubt as a dazzling run from the forward teed up his teammate to tap into an empty net. Neto then completed his treble as Delap once again played the decisive pass for the striker to coolly slot by a stranded goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening half-hour had long since erased. Their focus must now return to achieving a return to the top division under their manager, who left out a number of 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 strong situation in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next games this can be a positive example of how we should play."

Hull showed plenty of endeavour to the end, and they almost claimed a consolation when Lewis Koumas struck a the upright in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s evening, and another encouraging stride for their recently-appointed head coach at a stadium he knows very well.

FA Cup History Look Promising

The result made for an in the end straightforward evening’s performance, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three previous times in this competition in the past ten years and on each occasion, they have progressed to reach the final. Much still work in that respect, but this was another huge tick for Rosenior.