The Portuguese Forward Fires Hat-Trick as The Blues Provide Liam The Boss with Happy Homecoming to Hull

Against a backdrop of freezing rain, flurries, and a biting breeze from the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a determined home side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the makings of a challenging night's task for the visitors.

"We might have scored more but Hull are a good team and it was a tough fixture; I’m very pleased with the performance," he said. "This club means a lot to me so it was nice to get a positive welcome from the fans of supporters. The attitude of the players was superb."

The Rosenior has this city dear to him, considering some of his relatives are from Hull and his enjoyable spell in management of the Championship club. His positive connection was extended with a magnificent performance from his squad, who ultimately sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Edge Secures Comfortable Victory

Three days after letting slip a two-goal lead in the Premier League, there was a hint of vulnerability about them going into this intriguing tie. The capacity Hull support evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the challenge perfectly.

The manager rang the changes, enacting multiple of them to his starting lineup. The tie could and perhaps should have been decided earlier than it eventually was, with two the Brazilian winger and the forward guilty of missing glorious opportunities to put Chelsea in front in the first half.

However, fortunately for the away team, their Portuguese attacker was in a much more clinical frame of mind. He opened the deadlock with a spectacular distance effort, which acted as the spark for Chelsea to assume control of the match. By full time, they had four, with the forward scoring a trio of them for a superb three-goal haul.

Delap's Response and Impact

The home side showed great spirit throughout, but the clearer opportunities always came Chelsea’s way. Estêvão ought to have broken the deadlock when he rounded goalkeeper the Hull stopper before inexplicably firing over. The striker then had a comparable horror moment in front of goal against his former club.

He blocked a Phillips's clearance which came off the bar, and Delap started to run away thinking the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he understood, Hull's defenders had reacted to clear the danger.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was immensely instrumental from there on out, providing 3 key passes. The first was for the first goal as his pass teed up his teammate to finish from range. Six minutes after the second half began, it was 2-0 as Neto's set-piece went straight in through the keeper's legs.

Contest Put Beyond Doubt and Focus Shifts

Soon after Neto’s second, the match was effectively ended as a dazzling run from the forward teed up his teammate to slide into an empty net. Neto then finished his hat-trick as Delap once again delivered the decisive ball for the attacker to calmly convert past a stranded goalkeeper.

At that point, the effort Hull had done in the first half-hour had long since erased. Their priority must now switch back 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 deserved at least one goal but if we perform like this we will be in a strong position in the Championship," the Hull manager commented. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next games this can be a positive example of how we must play."

There was plenty of effort to the final whistle, and they nearly claimed a late goal when Lewis Koumas struck a post in injury time. But this was Chelsea’s night, and another positive stride for their new manager at a stadium he knows intimately.

FA Cup Omens Are Promising

The result resulted in an ultimately routine night's work, and the cup competition omens are positive from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three previous occasions in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to reach the final. There is still work in that respect, but this was another significant positive for the Chelsea boss.