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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a swirling wind from the banks of the Humber, alongside a resolute Hull City side fighting for promotion, this had all the ingredients of a difficult night's work for Chelsea.

"We could have added to our tally but Hull are a strong team and it was a difficult tie; I am very pleased with the display," the manager stated. "Hull City means a lot to me so it was great to get a good reception from the fans of supporters. The application of the players was superb."

The Chelsea manager has this city close to his heart, considering part of his relatives are from Hull and his successful period in charge of the Championship club. His positive connection was extended with a magnificent display from his team, who ultimately sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Edge Seals Comfortable Victory

Seventy-two hours removed from letting slip a two-goal advantage in the league, there was a sniff of fragility about them going into this intriguing tie. The capacity Hull support evidently sensed it too, but the London side handled the task perfectly.

The manager made alterations, making multiple of them to his starting lineup. The tie might and maybe ought to have been settled long before it actually was, with both Estêvão Willian and Liam Delap guilty of missing glorious opportunities to put their side ahead in the opening period.

However, fortunately for the away team, Pedro Neto was in a much more ruthless frame of mind. He opened the deadlock with a spectacular long-range effort, which acted as the spark for his team to take command of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had four, with the forward scoring three of them for a brilliant hat-trick.

The Forward's Redemption and Influence

Hull showed great fight throughout, but the better chances consistently fell to the visitors. The winger should have opened the scoring when he rounded keeper Dillon Phillips 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 clearance which came off the bar, and he began to celebrate believing the ball had gone over the line. It hadn’t, and by the time he understood, Hull's backline had reacted to avert the danger.

The player 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 pass set up his teammate to finish from outside the box. Shortly after the second half began, it was two as Neto's corner went straight in through the keeper's legs.

Tie Put Beyond Doubt and Attention Shifts

Soon after Neto’s second goal, the tie was effectively ended as a dazzling dribble from Delap teed up Estêvão to slide into an unguarded goal. Neto then finished his hat-trick as the provider once again delivered the crucial ball for the striker to calmly convert by a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had done in the opening half-hour had long since forgotten. Their priority must now return to securing a return to the Premier League under their manager, who left out several key individuals with that goal 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 upcoming games this can be a positive example of how we should play."

Hull showed great endeavour to the final whistle, and they nearly claimed a consolation when Lewis Koumas hit a the upright in stoppage time. But this was Chelsea’s evening, and another encouraging step forward for their new head coach at a stadium he knows very well.

Cup Omens Look Promising

That resulted in an ultimately routine evening’s work, 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 on each occasion, they have gone on to make the showpiece. Much still done in that respect, but this was another significant tick for the Chelsea boss.