Hull 0 Chelsea 3

Chelsea were brisk and business-like, with Lampard the brainchild behind this systematic demolition of Phil Brown's ambitious team. Lampard's drifted effort, clipped off the laces of his left boot after just three minutes, was exhilarating as well as exquisite, stunning in its execution and a statement of intent from a team beaten at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 86 attempts last weekend.

They were hurting, stung by the way Xabi Alonso's deflected effort for Liverpool knocked them off their perch at the top of the Barclays Premier League. What a response. Lampard is 99 league goals not out, scored during spells with Swansea (on loan), West Ham and Chelsea. The century could well be secured against Sunderland on Saturday.

Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari said: 'It is the best goal I have seen in my football career. Only Lampard could score that goal. He is an intelligent player. Every game you know how he will play. He is never tired. 'I don't see any player as good as Frank. It is fantastic for a coach to have a player like him. My vote for world player is for Frank.'

Scolari has warmed to Lampard, but the team scored two more, when Nicolas Anelka pounced on a defensive mistake in the 50th minute and then a third, ultimately dispatched with embarrassing ease by the outstretched leg of Florent Malouda.

This was a different Chelsea, relying on resilience and some of the more praiseworthy habits this team picked up under Jose Mourinho to match Hull for commitment and courage.

They returned to London with casualties, notably Ricardo Carvalho after he left the field with a thigh strain after a gritty battle with Marlon King and Daniel Cousin. Scolari's side set about them, getting in their faces and preparing for hand-to-hand combat against a team with top order ambitions of their own.

They were ruthless. It had to be that way, especially whenever Cousin or Geovanni were involved. Cousin's shot beat Petr Cech for pace, rebounding off the base of the post and then Geovanni teed up a free kick from 35 yards that forced Cech to fist the ball away for a corner.

It was cup-tie stuff, back to the good, old days when Lampard and Terry would tear off their shirts at the final whistle and thump their chests in front of the travelling supporters. They were prepared for the onslaught, with Hull piling bodies forward in search of an equaliser. Cavalier perhaps, but captivating all the same.

'There was a gulf at times,' admitted Tigers boss Phil Brown. 'It might look like a drubbing, but we have two days now to prepare for Old Trafford and I have told the lads that if anyone doesn't think we can get anything there they should not bother coming in.'

Great stuff from the Hull manager, clearly irritable after the team's first defeat since August. Chelsea came prepared, with lessons learned from last Sunday's defeat against Liverpool. Perhaps they needed some steel, a spine to complement the unquestionable skill that is found in every area of this super-strength team.

They finished them off when Anelka took advantage of an uncharacteristic mistake between Michael Turner and Kamil Zayatte, Hull's central defensive pairing, to score a second in the 50th minute.

They hesitated, allowing Anelka to dispossess Boaz Myhill on the edge of the area to make certain of all three points for Chelsea when he clipped the ball into an empty net. 'The second goal was Myhill's mistake,' added Brown. 'He has made his apologies in the dressing room, but that is too late for me.'

Brown wants qualification for Europe in their first season and a top eight finish to underline his burgeoning reputation. Instead, they fell apart after Anelka's strike. Hull encouraged Chelsea to attack, allowing Carvalho to play a neat pass down the left, sending a curved ball into the path of Malouda and the Chelsea winger scored from close range.