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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, flurries, and a swirling breeze off the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined Hull City side fighting for promotion, this had all the ingredients of a challenging evening’s work for the visitors.

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

The Chelsea manager has this city close to his heart, considering some of his family hail from Hull and his enjoyable period in charge of the Tigers. His happy association continued with a commanding display from his squad, who in the end strolled into the next round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Finishing Seals Comfortable Win

Three days after surrendering a 2-0 advantage in the Premier League, there was a sniff of fragility about them going into this intriguing tie. The packed Hull support evidently sensed it too, but the London side navigated the challenge with ease.

The manager rang the changes, enacting seven of them to his XI. The tie could and maybe ought to have been decided long before it eventually was, with both Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap at fault for spurning excellent opportunities to put Chelsea ahead in the first half.

However, luckily for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more ruthless mood. He opened the scoring with a spectacular distance strike, which proved to be the catalyst for Chelsea to assume command of proceedings. By full time, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

The Forward's Redemption and Impact

The home side displayed plenty of fight all game, but the clearer chances always came Chelsea’s way. The winger should have opened the scoring when he went past goalkeeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably shooting over. The striker then had a similar nightmare moment in front of goal against his former club.

He deflected a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and Delap began to celebrate believing the ball had crossed the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he realised, Hull's backline had reacted to clear the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely influential from there on out, providing three assists. The first was for the opening goal as his through ball set up his teammate to finish from range. Shortly after the restart, it was two as Neto's set-piece went directly in under the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Focus Turns

Soon after Neto’s second, the tie was put beyond doubt as a dazzling dribble from the forward laid on Estêvão to slide into an unguarded goal. Neto then finished his hat-trick as Delap once again played the crucial ball for the striker to coolly convert by a stranded Phillips.

By that stage, the work Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had been erased. Their focus must now return to achieving a promotion to the Premier League under their manager, who rested a number of first-choice players with that aim in mind.

"I think we earned at least one goal but if we perform like this we will be in a strong position in the Championship," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next games this can be a positive example of how we should play."

Hull showed plenty of endeavour 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 encouraging step forward for their recently-appointed head coach at a stadium he is familiar with intimately.

Cup Omens Are Good

The result resulted in an ultimately straightforward night's work, and the FA Cup-shaped signs are good from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three other times in this tournament in the last decade and on each occasion, they have gone on to make the showpiece. Much still done in that respect, but this was another significant positive for the Chelsea boss.