Goals from Wayne Rooney, who would later be sent off, and Robin van Persie secured a 2-1 victory for Manchester United at the expense of West Ham United this afternoon.

The visiting Hammers reduced the arrears before the break through Diafra Sakho, but despite the fact Rooney saw red in the second half, United held on to claim all three points.

Here, Sports Mole has reflected on the performances of each of the players involved at Old Trafford, giving them a rating out of 10.

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Goal

David de Gea: United's number one didn't cover himself in glory for the West Ham goal, but after that, he made a couple of smart stops. (6/10)

Defence

Luke Shaw: Making his competitive United debut, the England left-back looked comfortable going forward and linked well with Di Maria. However, he did look a little susceptible to deep crosses towards the back post. (6/10)

Paddy McNair: Thrown in for his first ever appearance in senior football, McNair can be pleased with his performance. He made a headed clearance in the dying stages that stopped an almost certain equaliser. (7/10)

Marcos Rojo: In his more natural position as a centre-back, Rojo did well. The Argentine was solid, made numerous clearances and also headed away the danger. (7/10)

Rafael da Silva: During the first half he got forward positively and set up Rooney's goal. There have been question marks over him defensively for some time, but he looked solid enough as United came under pressure. (7/10)

Midfield

Daley Blind: The Dutchman has been so composed since arriving at United from Ajax last month, but he had a day to forget. His passing, usually so accurate, was wayward at times. (5/10)

Ander Herrera: The diminutive Spaniard was United's best player during the first half. He kept things neat and tidy, as well as making some good challenges. Van Gaal will be hoping that his back injury is not too serious. (7/10)

Angel di Maria: He may have missed some chances during the first half, but his pace provided such an outlet for United and also put West Ham on the back foot. When he needed to battle in the second half, he did just that. (6/10)

Wayne Rooney: The captain scored a very good goal during a lively first-half showing, but he then showed the side of his game that has let him down so many times. It was a wild kick out at Downing, which was rightly punished with a red card. (5/10)

Attack

Radamel Falcao: The Colombian, who is still searching for his first United goal, was sacrificed following Rooney's red card. He still looks a little short of match fitness, but showed some nice touches, as well as setting up Van Persie's goal. (6/10)

Robin van Persie: Got his goal and looked a lot brighter than in recent weeks. His first touch was sharp, as was his passing. Another 90 minutes under his belt will have done the Dutchman no harm. (7/10)

Substitutes

Darren Fletcher: The Scot was brought on to mop up any danger in midfield and he did so with minimal fuss. Fletcher is just the type of player that you need when looking to hold on to a lead with 10 men. (7/10)

Antonio Valencia: Out of favour at the moment, Valencia came on and did well on the right flank. He provided some good support to Rafael. (6/10)

Tom Thorpe: It was the youngster's debut, but it lasted a matter of seconds! (6/10)

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Goal

Adrian: The Spanish keeper could do very little to stop either goal, but he did pull off a great save to deny a deflected Falcao shot in the second half. (6/10)

Defence

Aaron Cresswell: The summer signing from Ipswich Town looks a good buy. Steady defensively, Cresswell also sent in numerous dangerous crosses. (6/10)

James Tomkins: It was the usual performance from Tomkins, who was solid enough and made a handful of good clearances. (6/10)

Winston Reid: Similar to his centre-back partner Tomkins in that he made some good interceptions and clearances, although he will have been disappointed to have lost out to Van Persie for United's second goal. (6/10)

Guy Demel: A solid enough showing from the full-back, who looked a little tired when substituted midway through the second half. (6/10)

Midfield

Diego Poyet: The former Charlton Athletic man was given the responsibility of playing at the base of his side's midfield and to his credit, he did well without particularly standing out. (6/10)

Alex Song: The Barcelona loanee was at fault for United's second goal when he was caught in possession inside his own half. Other than that, it was a quiet outing from Song. (5/10)

Stewart Downing: So lively in recent weeks, Downing struggled to make a telling impact on this encounter. (6/10)

Morgan Amalfitano: His goal as a substitute against Liverpool earned him a starting place, but the winger was rather quiet and had little impact on proceedings before he was replaced. (5/10)

Attack

Enner Valencia: The Ecuadorian has caused problems since arriving in the Premier League and today was no different. His physical presence caused problems, but didn't result in an equalising goal. (7/10)

Diafra Sakho : Another goal for Sakho, who spearheaded West Ham's attack well. He had a couple of chances in the second half that he will feel he could have done better with, but it was another bright performance. (7/10)

Substitutes

Carlton Cole: Demoted to the bench following the summer additions, Cole struggled when he came on. To be fair to him, he wasn't presented with any chances. (6/10)

Carl Jenkinson: A really positive display from Jenkinson once he come for Demel. He sent two or three crosses into the area that caused real problems to United. After this, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him start next week. (7/10)

Kevin Nolan: The skipper, who is fit again after injury, had the ball in the net in the final minute, but was just offside. Apart from that, he didn't really feature. (6/10)

Written by
Liam Apicella