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Amid sleet, flurries, and a swirling wind off the banks of the Humber, alongside a resolute home side fighting for a top-flight place, this presented all the makings of a challenging evening’s task for the visitors.

"We might have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough tie; I’m delighted with the performance," the manager stated. "Hull City is very special to me so it was great to get a positive reception from the fans of fans. The attitude of the lads was superb."

The Rosenior holds this city dear to him, considering some of his family are from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Tigers. His happy association continued with a magnificent display from his team, who in the end strolled into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Finishing Seals Comprehensive Win

Three days after letting slip a 2-0 lead in the Premier League, there was a sniff of fragility about Chelsea going into this intriguing tie. The capacity home crowd evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the challenge with ease.

Rosenior made alterations, enacting seven of them to his starting lineup. The match could and maybe should have been settled earlier than it actually was, with two the Brazilian winger and Liam Delap guilty of missing excellent chances to put their side ahead in the first half.

However, fortunately for the visitors, their Portuguese attacker was in a far more ruthless mood. He broke the scoring with a marvellous long-range strike, which acted as the catalyst for his team to take command of the match. By the final whistle, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting a trio of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

The Forward's Response and Influence

Hull displayed plenty of spirit all game, but the clearer opportunities consistently came to the visitors. The winger should have broken the deadlock when he rounded keeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a comparable nightmare moment in front of goal against his old team.

He blocked a the goalkeeper's clearance which bounced off the bar, and Delap started to run away believing the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's backline had reacted to avert the threat.

Delap had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was immensely influential from there on out, registering three key passes. The opening was for the opening goal as his through ball set up Neto to score from outside the box. Shortly after the restart, it was two as Neto's set-piece went straight in under the keeper's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Turns

Soon after the second goal, the tie was effectively ended as a dazzling dribble from the forward teed up his teammate to tap into an empty net. Neto then finished his treble as the provider again played the crucial pass for the attacker to calmly slot past a stranded Phillips.

At that point, the effort Hull had put in in the first half-hour had long since forgotten. Their focus must now switch back to achieving a promotion to the top division under their manager, who rested several first-choice players with that aim in mind.

"In my opinion we earned at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong position in the league," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the next games this can be a good example of how we must play."

Hull showed great endeavour to the end, and they almost claimed a consolation when Lewis Koumas struck a post in stoppage time. But this was the Blues' evening, and another positive stride for their recently-appointed head coach at a place he is familiar with very well.

Cup History Are Good

That made for an ultimately straightforward night's performance, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three other occasions in this tournament in the past ten years and every single time, they have progressed to reach the showpiece. There is still done in that regard, but this was another huge tick for Rosenior.