🔗 Share this article

Against a backdrop of freezing rain, flurries, and a swirling breeze from the waters of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined Hull City side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this presented all the ingredients of a difficult evening’s work for the visitors.

"We might have added to our tally but the opposition are a strong team and it was a difficult tie; I’m very pleased with the display," the manager stated. "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 superb."

The Chelsea manager has this city dear to him, given some of his family are from Hull and his successful spell in management of the Championship club. This happy connection was extended with a commanding performance from his team, who in the end strolled into the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Finishing Secures Comfortable Win

Seventy-two hours after surrendering a two-goal lead in the Premier League, there was a sniff of vulnerability about them going into this potentially tricky cup clash. The packed Hull crowd clearly sensed it too, but the London side handled the task with ease.

The manager rang the changes, enacting seven of them to his starting lineup. The match might and perhaps should have been decided earlier than it eventually was, with both Estêvão Willian and the forward at fault for spurning excellent chances to put their side in front in the first half.

However, fortunately for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a much more ruthless mood. He broke the scoring with a spectacular distance effort, which acted as the catalyst for his team to take control of proceedings. By full time, they had 4 goals, with Neto scoring three of them for a brilliant three-goal haul.

Delap's Response and Impact

The home side showed great spirit all game, but the better chances consistently fell Chelsea’s way. The winger should have opened the deadlock when he rounded keeper the Hull stopper before inexplicably shooting over. Delap then had a comparable nightmare moment in front of goal against his former club.

He deflected a Phillips's clearance which came off the bar, and he began to run away thinking the ball had crossed the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had responded to clear the threat.

Delap had his head in his hands after that miss, but he was hugely influential from there on out, providing three assists. The first was for the first goal as his pass teed up his teammate to finish from outside the box. Six minutes after the restart, it was 2-0 as the forward's set-piece went directly in under Phillips's legs.

Tie Sealed and Focus Shifts

Soon after the second goal, the tie was put beyond doubt as a magnificent run from the forward laid on Estêvão to tap into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then completed his hat-trick as Delap again delivered the crucial ball for the striker to coolly slot past a stranded Phillips.

By that stage, the work Hull had put in in the first thirty minutes had long since erased. Their priority must now return to securing a return to the top division under their manager, who rested a number of first-choice individuals with that aim 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 league," the Hull manager commented. "Never surrender, maybe in the next matches this can be a positive lesson of how we must play."

There was plenty of endeavour to the final whistle, and they almost got a consolation when a substitute hit a the upright in injury time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another positive stride for their new head coach at a place he knows intimately.

FA Cup Omens Look Good

That made for an ultimately straightforward night's performance, and the FA Cup-shaped signs are positive from here for the winners. They have played Hull on three other times in this tournament in the last decade and every single time, they have gone on to make the showpiece. Much still work in that regard, but this was another huge positive for Rosenior.