West Ham vs Manchester City player ratings: Soucek 3, Rice 5; Haaland 9, Foden 7

Haaland nets brace on Premier League debut to give champions a perfect start to season in the searing heat of East London

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  WEST HAM RATINGS: Lukasz Fabianski - 6 The Polish shot-stopper got the nod ahead of Areola, but a collision with Erling Haaland saw him forced off with an injury on the half-hour mark. Did his job well enough and helped relieve pressure by claiming and punching crosses away. AFP

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  Vladimir Coufal – 4 Struggled against Grealish for the most part. Was too exposed on occasion, however, this was not completely his fault with Zouma often having to cover for Johnson. AFP

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  Kurt Zouma – 4 Jogging back for the second goal was not a good look for the Frenchman. Was caught ball-watching instead of tracking Haaland, which proved costly with the Norwegian netting his second. Reuters

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  Ben Johnson – 3 Playing out of position against the champions is never going to be an easy task. The youngster struggled. Was caught out of position for the second goal, and showed his relative inexperience as a centre-back. EPA

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  Aaron Cresswell – 4 Not the full-back’s greatest evening as he struggled throughout. Was a tough game for West Ham’s defence. PA

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  Tomos Soucek – 3 Was not in the game at all. The visitors' midfield were able to bypass the 27-year-old with ease, as he offered no protection to his back-line. West Ham fans will be hoping that this is an anomaly. EPA

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  Declan Rice – 5 Definitely on the losing side of the midfield battle, but did have his bright moments. Could have equalised for the Hammers early in the second-half, but fired over. Action Images

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  Jarrod Bowen – 4 Like Soucek, struggled to get into the game, and on the rare occasion he could drive the hosts forward, he proved to be wasteful in possession. Less than half of the Englishman’s passes found a West Ham shirt, showcasing a poor evening for the winger. Getty

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  Manuel Lanzini – 4 Tried to create, though found it difficult to choose the right option when presented with the ball. The midfield trio of Bowen, Lanzini and Fornals did struggle to create on the odd occasion they could get forward. Getty

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  Pablo Fornals – 4 Chased everything despite being visibly tired. Did not challenge the City defence enough however, in what was a comfortable day for the visitors. Reuters

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  Michail Antonio – 5 Really did try to create chances for himself but was very isolated. Ran his heart out, despite the lack of service. Was subbed after 56 minutes. AP

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  SUBS: Alphonse Areola – 4 Came on for the injured Fabianski. Gave away a penalty just five minutes later with a rash dive on Haaland. Could not have done much with the second. Getty

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  Said Benrahma – 3 Came on for Lanzini, but his crossing was poor throughout. Has been linked away with a move, and it may be for the best for all parties if a transfer materialises. PA

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  Gianluca Scamacca – 7 Replaced Antonio. Looked bright and caused some problems for the City defence. There will be calls for the Italian to start next week against Nottingham Forest. Getty

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  Flynn Downes – N/A Subbed on for Bowen. Like Coventry, did not have adequate time on the pitch to showcase his talent. Conor Coventry – N/A Replaced Fornals. Did not have time to influence the game. Getty

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  MANCHESTER CITY RATINGS: Ederson – 6 A comfortable clean sheet for the Brazilian, though there were a couple of uncharacteristic sloppy passes that infuriated his defence. Reuters

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  Kyle Walker – 7 Like Ederson, had a few dodgy moments, but kept Benrahma quiet when he came on, and was his usual reliable self. PA

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  Ruben Dias 8 Comfortable day at the office for Dias, who looked assured throughout Getty

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  Nathan Ake – 7 Won his aerial duels and formed a solid partnership with Dias to help keep David Moyes’ side at bay. Getty

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  Joao Cancelo – 5 Not Cancelo’s best showing, with the full-back sloppy in possession on a number of occasions – especially as the game went on. AFP

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  Kevin De Bruyne – 9 A classy performance from the Belgian. Assisted the second goal with a beautiful defence-splitting pass to send Haaland through on goal. Constant headache for the hosts. Started slowly, but grew into the game. AFP

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  Rodri – 7 Impressive as he helped the visitors dominate the midfield areas. Did not put a foot wrong. AFP

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  Ilkay Gundogan – 8 His pass created the penalty after Haaland was felled. Settled into the game quickly and looked assured. AP

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  Phil Foden – 7 Looked bright, but perhaps flattered to deceive on occasion. Did not have a clear-cut chance, but still buzzed around constantly. Getty

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  Erling Haaland – 9: The Norweigian did not disappoint on his Premier League debut. Was fouled for the penalty, and finished the subsequent spot kick with aplomb. Looked rapid and a real handful, as he raced through on goal to slot home his second. Should have had a hat-trick, but could only head over from close range. EPA

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  Jack Grealish – 6 Struggled to impose himself. Looked threatening on occasion, but did not do enough. Reuters

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  SUBS: Bernardo Silva – 6 Replaced Gundogan with ten minutes left. Slotted in nicely and did not put a foot wrong. Getty

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  Julian Alvarez – N/A Subbed on for Haaland. A few nice runs, but not enough time to influence the game. AFP

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  Cole Palmer – N/A Replaced De Bruyne. Will be interesting to see how many minutes the talented youngster gets this season. AP

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  Kalvin Phillips – N/A Came on for Rodri. A nice moment to get his first minutes as a City player in the Premier League. AFP

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  Riyad Mahrez – N/A Subbed on for Phil Foden. City were cruising, and the Algerian did not have a lot to do. AFP

Erling Haaland scored twice on his Premier League debut as Manchester City opened their defence of the title with a 2-0 win at West Ham on Sunday.

Haaland lived up to the hype since his transfer from Borussia Dortmund to give the champions a perfect start to the season in the searing heat of East London.

West Ham nearly derailed City's title chances when they led 2-0 at half-time in the penultimate game of last season before Pep Guardiola's men battled back for the point that ultimately edged out Liverpool at the top of the table.

But they were no match this time as Haaland immediately proved the value of City adding a proven goalscorer to their arsenal.

The Norwegian has been signed as the long-term successor to Sergio Aguero and started his City career just like the club's all time record goalscorer with a double on his league debut.

Haaland had missed chances in City's 3-1 defeat to Liverpool in the Community Shield, but Guardiola's warning that the goals would soon flow proved to be correct.

City's patient possession game wore the Hammers down as temperatures in the English capital soared above 30 degrees celsius on Sunday.

Haaland took responsibility from the penalty spot to open his Premier League account after he had been brought down by Alphonse Areola.

West Ham started the second half with more attacking intent but that simply played into the hands of City's new weapon as Kevin De Bruyne split open their defence with one pass on the counter-attack for Haaland to gallop clear on goal and slot low past Areola.