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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, flurries, and a biting wind off the waters of the Humber, alongside a determined home side fighting for promotion, this presented all the ingredients of a challenging evening’s task for the visitors.

"We might have scored more but Hull are a good team and it was a tough fixture; I am delighted with the performance," he said. "Hull City means a lot to me so it was great to get a good welcome from the fans of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

The Rosenior holds this place close to his heart, considering some of his family are from Hull and his successful spell in charge of the Tigers. His happy association continued with a commanding performance from his team, who in the end sauntered into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Finishing Seals Comprehensive Win

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a two-goal advantage in the league, there was a sniff of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this potentially tricky cup clash. The packed home crowd clearly sensed it too, but the London side handled the task with ease.

The manager rang the changes, making multiple of them to his starting lineup. The tie could and maybe ought to have been settled earlier than it actually was, with both the Brazilian winger and the forward guilty of spurning excellent chances to put Chelsea in front in the opening period.

However, fortunately for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a much more ruthless frame of mind. He broke the scoring with a marvellous long-range strike, which acted as the catalyst for Chelsea to assume command of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had 4 goals, with the forward scoring three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

Delap's Redemption and Influence

Hull showed plenty of spirit all game, but the clearer chances consistently came to the visitors. The winger ought to have broken the scoring when he rounded keeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a similar horror incident in front of goal against his former club.

He blocked a the goalkeeper's clearance which bounced off the bar, and Delap began to run away believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, 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 there on out, registering 3 assists. The first was for the first goal as his pass teed up Neto to score from range. Shortly after the second half began, it was 2-0 as Neto's corner went straight in under the keeper's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Turns

Seven minutes after the second, the tie was effectively ended as a magnificent dribble from the forward teed up his teammate to tap into an unguarded goal. Neto then completed his treble as Delap again delivered the decisive pass for the attacker to coolly convert by a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had put in in the first thirty minutes had long since forgotten. Their focus must now switch back to achieving a return to the top division under their manager, who rested a number of first-choice players with that aim in mind.

"I think 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 upcoming matches this can be a positive lesson of how we must play."

Hull showed plenty of effort to the final whistle, and they almost claimed a late goal when a substitute struck a post in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s evening, and another positive stride for their new manager at a stadium he is familiar with very well.

Cup History Are Promising

That resulted in an in the end routine night's work, and the cup competition signs are good from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three other times in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have gone on to make the showpiece. Much remains to be done in that regard, but this was another significant positive for the Chelsea boss.