Manchester United West Ham United: Player Ratings
Romelu Lukaku netted a brace on league debut for Manchester United as Jose Mourinho's side demolished West Ham United at Old Trafford.
The Belgian opened his account with a left-footed strike after Marcus Rashford's reverse pass, before doubling his tally with a header from Henrikh Mkhitaryan's free-kick.
Substitute Anthony Martial stretched United's lead, before turning provider for United's fourth for Paul Pogba to steer home and send United to the top of the table at the end of the first round of Premier League fixtures.
Here are the player ratings from a one-sided encounter at Manchester:
Manchester United
David de Gea - 7
The Spaniard had to make just a single save to deny Edimilson Fernandes in the dying seconds of the first half. He was nearly caught off his line when Marko Arnautovic beat Daley Blind to a header, but the woodwork saved him the blushes.
Antonio Valencia - 7
Valencia had an impressive start to the season, steaming forward and covering a lot of ground while having to defend. The ease with which he channels the right flanks allowed Mata to drift into a more comfortable central position.
Eric Bailly - 7
Despite a couple of slightly rash challenges, the Ivorian defender was composed at the back, not allowing Chicharito a glimpse of the ball in the box.
Phil Jones - 6.5
Like Bailly, Jones was also guilty of minor defensive errors, first a fast-paced back-pass to make life uncomfortable for de Gea followed by heavy touch to lose the ball at the edge of the box for West Ham to create a chance. However, his overall performance was satisfactory and without any communication gaps with his fellow defenders.
Daley Blind - 7
Blind was initially rusty, finding himself unable to fire in crosses and losing possession carelessly in attack. He improved gradually in the second half and was more purposeful down the wing, linking up with Rashford.
The Dutchman even went close to scoring himself, jabbing the ball just over Joe Hart's woodwork when unmarked by opposite man Pablo Zabaleta.
Nemanja Matic - 8.5
Matic put in a performance that perfectly reflected what Chelsea were missing in Saturday's shock defeat to Burnley - a stable figure in front of the defence, a wide range of passing and a shape-holder in midfield. It was a debut to remember for the Serbian.
United may have finally found the ideal defensive midfielder who possesses these title-winning attributes.
Paul Pogba - 8
Matic's assured presence in midfield gave United's record-signing the freedom he absolutely craves to express himself on the pitch. The Frenchman - who at times last season found himself undergoing defensive duties - was given the license to operate in the attacking half.
The results showed - his quick feet made dribbling look so pleasing to the eye, while his floated balls forward to send teammates through on goal left onlookers in awe. He got the goal he deserved in the dying moments after Martial found him in space through the heart of the Hammers' defence. A string of such performances could well lead to a landmark season for Manchester United.
Juan Mata - 7
The Spaniard made a decent contribution to the game with some nice first touches and quick passing across the attacking third to maintain United's tempo.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan - 7.5
An uncertain first half from the Armenian was quickly forgotten with a stellar display in the second half. His free-kick to locate Lukaku for his second goal was the moment he kick-started his game after missing promising chances and fluffing his first touches in the opening 45 minutes. He took on West Ham players at will, participated in counter-attacks and provided a deft pass for Anthony Martial to score United's third.
Marcus Rashford - 7.5
Rashford was excellent on the ball during counter attacks, giving Pablo Zabaleta a nightmare beginning to the season. His lightning quick feet while charging in from the left wing was too much for the aging Argentine full-back.
He provided a brilliant reverse pass for Lukaku and United to open their accounts for the season. His finishing is probably the only element he must work on in the coming weeks of the season.
Romelu Lukaku - 8.5
The Belgian wasted no time in making himself feel at home at Old Trafford, beating Joe Hart twice to mark his United debut in style. He helped round off a Manchester United counter-attack in the first half, scoring after hitting the inside of the post.
He doubled his and United's lead early in the second period, beating Masuaku in an aerial duel from Mkhitaryan's free-kick to leave Joe Hart flat-footed.
His pace and strength made it extremely difficult to defend against as he held the ball up and manoeuvered it in the vicinity of the penalty box with confidence.
Substitutes:
Marouane Fellaini - 6.5
Fellaini was sent on to succesfully put a stranglehold on the game after United were two goals up.
Anthony Martial - 7.5
Martial came on to devastating effect, finding the back of the net after being sent clear by Mkhitaryan before providing the assist for Paul Pogba to beat Joe Hart from close range.
Jesse Lingard - N/A
Lingard replaced Mkhitaryan late in the game.
West Ham United
Joe Hart - 5.5
A debut to forget for the Manchester City loanee, making a couple of routine saves but having to pick the ball out of his net on four occasions.
Pablo Zabaleta - 5
Another West Ham acquisition from Manchester City with a debut to put aside quickly, as Zabaleta was tormented on the wing by Rashford's excellence on the ball.
Winston Reid - 6
Reid made a number of good clearances from the back, but found United's ruthlessness on the counter-attack too much of a force to deal with.
Angelo Ogbonna - 5.5
The Italian centre-half struggled to cope with Lukaku's movements in the penalty box, losing him as a marker on several occasions.
Arthur Masuaku - 5.5
Masuaku had a bright start at left-back, going forward with relative purpose. However, United's attacking prowess took over as the game wore on, inhibiting him from crossing his own half. He was easily beaten in the air by Lukaku en route to United's second goal and was constantly kept on his toes by Valencia's pace.
Mark Noble - 6
West Ham's skipper attempted to bring some degree of composure to West Ham's play by dictating play in front of the back-four, but United's free-flowing play made it difficult for the Hammers to settle into any sort of rhythm.
Pedro Obiang - 5.5
Obiang was tasked with a box-to-box role, but never really threatened to split United's defence with a decisive through pass or a long-ball to find the runs of Javier Hernandez.
Andre Ayew - 4
Ayew contributed virtually nothing to the game either defensively or in attack. He was unable to deliver any meaningful crosses and carelessly gave away possession on multiple instances.
Edimilson Fernandes - 5.5
Fernandez missed West Ham's best opportunity of the game in first-half injury time, getting himself into some space at the edge of the box but directing his shot straight at the palms of David de Gea. He failed to provide the cutting edge in the heart of attack - usually expected from a number ten.
Marko Arnautovic - 7
Arnautovic - making his Hammers' debut after signing from Stoke in the summer - was his side's best performer on the pitch. He seemed to be the only one offering any sort of urgency in attack by whipping in crosses and testing the opposition defence during set-pieces. The Austrian was inches away from scoring, heading onto the crossbar in the second half after David de Gea was caught off his line.
Javier Hernandez - 6
The Mexican was frustrated on his return to Old Trafford, deprived of any service and seeing his movements well marshalled by United's centre-halves.
Substitutes:
Diafra Sakho - 5
Sakho headed off target seconds after coming on, but that was his only contribution during the half an hour he was on the pitch.
Declan Rice - 5
The young Irishman replaced Mark Noble to bring some fresh legs into West Ham's play, but found the Old Trafford stage coming too soon for him to make a decisive impact.
Aaron Cresswell - N/A
Cresswell came on for fellow full-back Masuaku in the late stages.