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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a swirling wind from the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side pushing hard for promotion, this had all the makings of a challenging evening’s task for Chelsea.

"We could have scored more but the opposition are a good team and it was a tough fixture; I am delighted with the display," the manager stated. "Hull City is very special to me so it was great to get a good welcome from the fans of fans. The application of the players was superb."

The Chelsea manager has this place close to his heart, considering part of his relatives are from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Championship club. His positive association was extended with a commanding display from his squad, who in the end strolled into the next round of the famous old competition.

Deadly Finishing Seals Comfortable Victory

Seventy-two hours after surrendering a 2-0 lead in the league, there was a sniff of fragility about them going into this intriguing cup clash. The packed Hull support evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men handled the challenge with ease.

Rosenior rang the changes, making multiple of them to his XI. The tie might and maybe should have been settled long before it actually was, with two the Brazilian winger and the forward at fault for missing excellent chances to put their side ahead in the first half.

However, luckily for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He broke the scoring with a spectacular distance strike, which acted as the spark for Chelsea to take control of the match. By the final whistle, they had four, with Neto scoring a trio of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

Delap's Redemption and Impact

Hull showed great spirit all game, but the better opportunities consistently came Chelsea’s way. Estêvão ought to have broken the scoring when he rounded goalkeeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably shooting over. The striker then had a similar horror incident in front of goal against his former club.

He blocked a Phillips's clearance which bounced off the bar, and he began to celebrate believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the threat.

Delap had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely instrumental from that point onward, registering 3 key passes. The opening was for the opening goal as his through ball set up Neto to score from outside the box. Six minutes after the second half began, it was 2-0 as the forward's set-piece went directly in through the keeper's legs.

Contest Sealed and Attention Turns

Soon after Neto’s second goal, the tie was put beyond doubt as a dazzling run from the forward laid on his teammate to slide into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then finished his hat-trick as Delap once again delivered the crucial ball for the attacker to coolly slot by a helpless goalkeeper.

At that point, the work Hull had done in the opening thirty minutes had long since erased. Their focus must now return to securing a promotion to the Premier League under Sergej Jakirovic, who rested several key individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we earned at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong position in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "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 got a late goal when a substitute hit a post in injury time. But this was the Blues' night, and another positive step forward for their recently-appointed manager at a place he is familiar with very well.

Cup History Look Good

The result resulted in an ultimately straightforward evening’s work, and the cup competition signs are good from here for the winners. They have played 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 work in that respect, but this was another significant positive for Rosenior.