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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a swirling breeze from the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this presented all the makings of a difficult evening’s work for the visitors.

"We could have added to our tally but the opposition are a strong team and it was a difficult tie; I’m delighted with the performance," he said. "This club means a lot to me so it was nice to get a positive welcome from both sets of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

The Chelsea manager has this city close to his heart, given some of his family hail from Hull and his successful period in management of the Championship club. His happy connection was extended with a commanding performance from his squad, who in the end strolled into the fifth round of the famous old competition.

Clinical Edge Seals Comprehensive Win

Seventy-two hours removed from letting slip a two-goal advantage in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about Chelsea going into this potentially tricky cup clash. The packed home crowd evidently felt it too, but Rosenior's men handled the challenge with ease.

Rosenior rang the changes, making seven of them to his XI. The tie could and perhaps ought to have been decided long before it actually was, with two Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap guilty of missing glorious opportunities to put Chelsea in front in the first half.

But, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a far more clinical mood. He broke the scoring with a spectacular long-range strike, which acted as the catalyst for his team to assume control of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting three of them for a brilliant hat-trick.

The Forward's Redemption and Influence

The home side displayed great spirit all game, but the clearer chances always fell Chelsea’s way. The winger should have broken the scoring when he rounded keeper Dillon Phillips 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 came off 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 reacted to clear the threat.

Delap had his head in his hands after that miss, but he was hugely instrumental from there on out, registering three key passes. The first was for the opening goal as his through ball set up Neto to finish from range. Shortly after the restart, it was 2-0 as the forward's set-piece went directly in through Phillips's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Soon after Neto’s second goal, the match was effectively ended as a dazzling run from Delap teed up his teammate to slide into an unguarded goal. Neto then completed his hat-trick as the provider once again played the crucial ball for the attacker to calmly slot past a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening thirty minutes had long since forgotten. Their priority must now return to securing a promotion to the Premier League under their manager, who left out a number of first-choice individuals with that aim in mind.

"In my opinion we deserved at least one goal but if we play like this we will be in a strong situation in the Championship," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the upcoming matches this can be a positive example of how we must play."

There was plenty of endeavour to the final whistle, and they almost claimed a late goal when Lewis Koumas hit a the upright in injury time. But this was the Blues' night, and another positive step forward for their new manager at a stadium he knows intimately.

Cup Omens Look Good

The result resulted in an in the end straightforward night's performance, and the cup competition omens are good from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three other occasions in this tournament in the past ten years and on each occasion, they have progressed to make the final. There is remains to be work in that regard, but this was another huge positive for the Chelsea boss.