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Against a backdrop of sleet, flurries, and a biting breeze from the banks of the Humber, alongside a resolute home side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a challenging night's work for the visitors.

"We might have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a difficult tie; I am delighted with the display," the manager stated. "This club is very special to me so it was nice to get a good welcome from the fans of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

Liam Rosenior holds this city close to his heart, given some of his family are from Hull and his successful spell in charge of the Championship club. His positive association continued with a commanding performance from his team, who in the end sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Edge Seals Comfortable Victory

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a two-goal advantage in the league, there was a hint of fragility about Chelsea going into this intriguing tie. The packed home support clearly felt it too, but Rosenior's men handled the challenge with ease.

Rosenior made alterations, making seven of them to his starting lineup. The tie might and perhaps should have been settled long before it eventually was, with two Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap at fault for spurning excellent chances to put their side ahead in the first half.

But, fortunately for the away team, their Portuguese attacker was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He broke the deadlock with a marvellous distance strike, which proved to be the spark for Chelsea to assume command of proceedings. By full time, they had four, with Neto netting three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

The Forward's Redemption and Impact

Hull displayed plenty of fight all game, but the clearer chances consistently came to the visitors. Estêvão ought to have broken the deadlock when he rounded goalkeeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably shooting over. The striker then had a comparable horror moment in front of goal against his old team.

He deflected a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and Delap started to celebrate believing the ball had crossed 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 influential from that point onward, providing three key passes. The opening was for the opening goal as his through ball teed up his teammate to score from range. Shortly after the restart, it was 2-0 as Neto's corner went directly in under the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Focus Turns

Soon after the second goal, the match was put beyond doubt as a magnificent run from the forward laid on Estêvão to slide into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then completed his hat-trick as the provider once again delivered the crucial pass for the attacker to coolly slot by a helpless Phillips.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening thirty minutes had long since erased. Their priority must now switch back to securing a promotion to the top division under their manager, who rested several first-choice players with that aim 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 Championship," he said. "Never surrender, maybe in the upcoming games this can be a good lesson of how we should play."

Hull showed great endeavour to the final whistle, and they nearly claimed a consolation when a substitute hit a post in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another positive step forward for their new manager at a place he is familiar with very well.

Cup History Look Promising

The result made for an ultimately routine night's performance, and the FA Cup-shaped omens are good from here for the winners. They have played Hull on three previous occasions in this tournament in the last decade and every single time, they have gone on to reach the final. There is remains to be done in that respect, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.