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Against a backdrop of sleet, snow, and a swirling wind from the banks of the Humber, alongside a resolute Hull City side pushing hard for promotion, this presented all the ingredients of a challenging evening’s task for Chelsea.

"We might have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a difficult tie; I’m very pleased with the display," he said. "This club is very special to me so it was nice to get a good welcome from the fans of fans. The application of the lads was excellent."

The Chelsea manager holds this city dear to him, considering part of his family are from Hull and his successful period in management of the Championship club. This happy connection was extended with a magnificent performance from his team, who ultimately sauntered into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Finishing Secures Comprehensive Win

Seventy-two hours after letting slip a two-goal lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of fragility about them going into this intriguing cup clash. The capacity home support evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the challenge perfectly.

Rosenior made alterations, enacting multiple of them to his starting lineup. The tie could and perhaps ought to have been settled long before it eventually was, with both Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap guilty of missing excellent opportunities to put Chelsea ahead in the first half.

But, luckily for the away team, their Portuguese attacker was in a far more clinical mood. He broke the scoring with a spectacular long-range strike, which acted as the catalyst for Chelsea to take command of the match. By full time, they had 4 goals, with the forward scoring three of them for a superb three-goal haul.

Delap's Redemption and Influence

The home side displayed great fight all game, but the clearer chances always came to the visitors. The winger should have broken the scoring when he rounded goalkeeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a similar horror incident in front of goal against his old team.

He blocked a the goalkeeper's kick which came back from the crossbar, and he started to celebrate thinking the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had reacted to avert the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that miss, but he was immensely instrumental from there on out, registering three assists. The first was for the opening goal as his pass teed up Neto to score from range. Six minutes after the restart, it was 2-0 as Neto's corner went straight in through Phillips's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Seven minutes after Neto’s second goal, the match was put beyond doubt as a dazzling dribble from the forward laid on his teammate to tap into an empty net. Neto then completed his hat-trick as Delap again delivered the decisive ball for the striker to coolly convert by a stranded goalkeeper.

At that point, the effort Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had long since erased. Their focus must now return to achieving a return to the Premier League under their manager, who rested several key 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 very good position in the league," the Hull manager commented. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next matches this can be a positive example of how we must play."

Hull showed great effort to the final whistle, and they nearly got a late goal when Lewis Koumas struck a the upright in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another encouraging step forward for their recently-appointed head coach at a stadium he knows intimately.

Cup History Are Good

That made for an ultimately routine night's performance, and the FA Cup-shaped omens are positive from here for the winners. They have played Hull on three other occasions in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to make the final. There is still work in that respect, but this was another significant tick for Rosenior.