The Portuguese Neto Scores Treble as Chelsea Deliver Manager Rosenior with Happy Homecoming to Hull City

Against a backdrop of sleet, snow, and a biting breeze from the banks of the Humber, alongside a resolute home side pushing hard for promotion, this had all the makings of a difficult night's task for Chelsea.

"We might have scored more but Hull are a strong team and it was a tough tie; I’m delighted with the performance," the manager stated. "Hull City is very special to me so it was nice to get a positive welcome from the fans of supporters. The attitude of the players was superb."

The Chelsea manager holds this place dear to him, given some of his family hail from Hull and his successful period in charge of the Championship club. His positive association was extended with a commanding display from his team, who in the end sauntered into the next round of the FA Cup.

Deadly Edge Seals Comprehensive Victory

Seventy-two hours removed from letting slip a 2-0 advantage in the league, there was a hint of fragility about Chelsea going into this potentially tricky tie. The capacity Hull support evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the challenge perfectly.

Rosenior rang the changes, making seven of them to his XI. The tie might and maybe ought to have been settled earlier than it eventually was, with both Estêvão Willian and the forward at fault for spurning glorious chances to put Chelsea ahead in the opening period.

However, luckily for the away team, their Portuguese attacker was in a much more ruthless mood. He opened the deadlock with a spectacular long-range effort, which acted as the catalyst for his team to take command of proceedings. By the final whistle, they had four, with the forward scoring a trio of them for a superb hat-trick.

The Forward's Redemption and Influence

Hull showed great spirit all game, but the clearer chances always came Chelsea’s way. The winger ought to have broken the scoring when he rounded keeper the Hull stopper before unbelievably firing over. The striker then had a comparable nightmare incident in front of goal against his old team.

He blocked a Phillips's kick which bounced back from the bar, and he began to run away thinking the ball had crossed the line. It had not, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had reacted to clear the threat.

Delap had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely influential from that point onward, providing 3 key passes. The first was for the first goal as his pass teed up his teammate to finish from outside the box. Six minutes after the second half began, it was two as the forward's corner went directly in under the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Attention Shifts

Soon after the second, the tie was effectively ended as a magnificent run from Delap laid on Estêvão to tap into an empty net. The hat-trick hero then finished his hat-trick as Delap again delivered the decisive ball for the attacker to calmly slot by a helpless Phillips.

By that stage, the work Hull had done in the opening thirty minutes had been erased. Their focus must now switch back to securing a return to the Premier League under Sergej Jakirovic, who rested a number of key 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 very good position in the league," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next games this can be a positive example of how we must play."

Hull showed great effort to the end, and they nearly got a consolation when Lewis Koumas hit a the upright in injury time. But this was the Blues' evening, and another encouraging stride for their new manager at a place he knows very well.

FA Cup History Look Promising

That resulted in an ultimately routine night's work, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for Chelsea. They have faced Hull on three previous times in this tournament in the past ten years and on each occasion, they have gone on to make the showpiece. There is remains to be done in that respect, but this was another significant tick for Rosenior.