Chelsea Stars Shine as Blues Demolish Hull to Storm Into Fifth Round

Chelsea secured their progression to the FA Cup's subsequent stage with a dominant 4–0 triumph against Hull City on Friday evening.

An inefficient opening period for Chelsea witnessed Estêvão squander a clear scoring opportunity and Liam Delap being denied by goal-line technology amid the thick snowfall, however Pedro Neto's spectacular long-range effort five minutes before halftime provided the Blues with the advantage their display deserved.

Neto's fierce near-post corner delivery somehow found its way into the net five minutes following the interval, before Estêvão drove home a third goal just prior to the hour.

Chelsea's number 7 sealed his treble ten minutes thereafter, concluding a superb collective attacking sequence to crown an almost flawless night for the Blues.

Winners and Losers

Winners and Losers

Winners

Winners

Pedro Neto received the starting assignment in the central attacking midfielder position, and he validated Liam Rosenior's confidence with an energetic display. The Portuguese star consistently withdrew deeper to orchestrate play but made his mark personally with a genuine array of excellent finishes.

It marked an outstanding debut outing for Mamadou Sarr, who was featuring for the first time since his return from Strasbourg. While acknowledging he will encounter more challenging opposition ahead, Sarr appeared composed and assured in both defensive and offensive phases.

Loser

Loser

Supporters have expressed their dissatisfaction with Alejandro Garnacho in recent matches, and this display won't have altered that perception. Despite facing clearly weaker opposition, the Argentine seldom appeared settled. Wasted a promising early opportunity and everything seemed to deteriorate from that point.

Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Hull (4-2-3-1)

Chelsea Player Ratings vs. Hull (4-2-3-1)

*Ratings courtesy of FotMob*

GK: Robert Sánchez—8.6: Barely required until the closing ten minutes. An intelligent injury-time stop to maintain his shutout.

RB: Reece James—7.1: A commanding defensive showing. Consistently handled his opposing winger with ease. Much more involved offensively after halftime before being sensibly substituted at the hour mark following his recovery from illness and injury.

CB: Wesley Fofana—7.7: Encountered minimal defensive challenges and was permitted to showcase his distribution skills. Demonstrated technical prowess we don't regularly witness from the French defender.

CB: Mamadou Sarr—7.6: Made an impression on his first start since his return. Extremely comfortable defensively and, similar to Fofana, displayed genuine class with his passing to maintain possession.

LB: Jorrel Hato—7.0: Provided pace down the left flank while attempting to contribute in attack. Held his own defensively.

DM: Moisés Caicedo—7.9: His defensive skills weren't particularly needed, instead focusing on chance creation. Performed adequately in that capacity without truly excelling. Made a crucial intervention to prevent a dangerous delivery shortly after Neto's second strike.

DM: Andrey Santos—7.9: Maintained Chelsea's rhythm with intelligent distribution. Appearing progressively settled in the defensive midfield role.

RM: Estêvão—8.0: Energetic as usual but inconsistent in the attacking third. Beat the keeper in the opening half but managed to send his shot over the crossbar, though made no similar error when Delap provided him with a perfect opportunity in the second period.

AM: Pedro Neto—9.7: Should have found the net early but ultimately earned the goals his dynamic performance warranted. His opener was beautiful and his second somewhat lucky, and he concluded a remarkable evening with an intelligent hat-trick completion.

LM: Alejandro Garnacho—8.0: Generated a decent opportunity early but reverted to his disappointing form, failing to beat his marker consistently.

ST: Liam Delap—9.3: A laughable miss that saw him celebrate prematurely appeared to trigger a sequence of errors from Delap in the opening period. Made amends after the interval with two excellent assists and technically finished with three after a straightforward pass to Neto for the first goal.

SUB: Enzo Fernández (60' for Caicedo)—6.3: Operated comfortably as he simply maintained possession.

SUB: Josh Acheampong (60' for James)—6.3: A rapid sprint down the right immediately after entering reminded supporters of his capabilities.

SUB: Tosin Adarabioyo (76' for Fofana)—6.4: Required more defensive work during his brief appearance than Fofana had previously.

SUB: Jesse Derry (76' for Estêvão)—6.5: Several promising moments on a comfortable first-team debut.

SUB: Shim Mheuka (87' for Delap)—N/A

Unused substitutes: Teddy Sharman-Lowe (GK), Benoît Badiashile, Malo Gusto, João Pedro

What the Ratings Tell Us

What the Ratings Tell Us

The Statistics Behind Chelsea's Commanding Victory

The Statistics Behind Chelsea's Commanding Victory