Robin van Persie responded to criticism of his recent form by scoring in Manchester United's 3-0 victory over Hull City this afternoon.

Centre-back Chris Smalling found the net for the first time this season early on, before captain Wayne Rooney doubled the home side's advantage.

The outcome was then sealed in the 67th minute by Van Persie, as the Dutch striker powered his effort into the roof of the net.

Here, Sports Mole has rated the performances of all of the players on show at Old Trafford.

MANCHESTER UNITED

Goal

David de Gea: The Spaniard had one save of note to make, which he did with minimal fuss in the second half. Having been busy on many occasions this season, De Gea will be pleased to have been so quiet. (6/10)

Defence

Ashley Young: Not a natural left-back, Young can be pleased with his work. He was not exactly tested too often defensively, but he still carried out his responsibilities well. (7/10)

Marcos Rojo: Returning from a shoulder injury, this was probably the perfect outing for Rojo. He had little to do, but looked assured in possession. (6/10)

Chris Smalling: He was not a popular figure after receiving a red card in the Manchester derby, but Smalling has gone some way to redeeming himself in recent games. He opened the scoring, while keeping things simple defensively. (6/10)

Antonio Valenica: There was not too much defending for the makeshift right-back to do, which meant that he could get forward almost at will. A steady showing from the Ecuadorian. (6/10)

Midfield

Michael Carrick: Everybody connected with United must be delighted to see Carrick back fit. He brought great calmness to the midfield and showed good vision, both with long and short-range passes. (8/10)

Marouane Fellaini: There are those, with some justification, that have doubted Fellaini's ability on the ball since he arrived at United. Even so, this afternoon he was rarely wasteful and kept things simple. (6/10)

Juan Mata: Back in the starting lineup and the pint-sized playmaker did not disappoint. He linked well with his teammates and always demanded possession, even when tightly marked. (7/10)

Angel di Maria: The Argentine looked both lively and positive in the opening exchanges, but his afternoon was cut short by a hamstring strain. Another one on Van Gaal's injury list. (6/10)

Attack

Wayne Rooney: The skipper is in clinical form currently and, although he was not always involved today, he still scored a great goal from distance. (6/10)

Robin van Persie: He seemed to still be lacking sharpness in the first half, but was much more the Van Persie that of previous years after the restart. His movement was good and he was rewarded with a stunning goal. (6/10)

Substitutes

Ander Herrera: The summer signing has been out of the side recently, but he did his chances of getting regular action from now on no harm after replacing Di Maria. His passing was always accurate, while his movement caused problems. (7/10)

Radamel Falcao: Looked lively on his return to action, but the Colombian will have been disappointed not to have scored with a good chance in stoppage time. (6/10)

Darren Fletcher: The Scot came on in the closing stages and showed his experience by keeping the ball well and allowing the clock to tick down. (6/10)

HULL CITY

Goal

Allan McGregor: Will probably be disappointed with conceding the first goal, but Hull's Scottish goalkeeper did okay today. He prevented the scoreline from becoming embarrassing. (6/10)

Defence

Andrew Robertson: The wing-back may still have plenty to learn, yet he showed bags of potential down the flank. His positive run and shot in the second half was a particular highlight. (6/10)

James Chester: The former United trainee was restored to the starting lineup, but looked slightly sluggish. His outing was summed up by a wild sliding tackle on Young, which earned him a deserved caution. (5/10)

Michael Dawson: He was comfortably Hull's best defender today. His lack of pace is well known, but Dawson read the danger signs well and made a number of key clearances. (7/10)

Curtis Davies: Usually a dependable figure at the heart of the Hull rearguard, Davies was shaky today. It was his error that ended in United's second goal, which killed the game as a contest. (5/10)

Ahmed Elmohamady: The Egyptian is used to getting forward and swinging in crosses. However, he was pegged back and rarely got forward, which seemed to be the source of much frustration. (6/10)

Midfield

Jake Livermore: Last weekend's goalscorer put in plenty of effort and even showed good pace to keep up with Di Maria at one stage, but he never really got on the ball and as a result had little impact on the game. (6/10)

Mohamed Diame: It was an energetic showing from the fit-again Diame, who put in a very good shift for his team. He struggled to have much of an impact in the final third, though. (6/10)

Robbie Brady: Came off looking dazed, which summed up his performance. He struggled to get to grips with the pace of the game and was sometimes guilty of giving the ball away cheaply. (5/10)

Hatem Ben Arfa: The Frenchman only lasted 35 minutes before he was hooked by his manager, who was infuriated by his poor workrate - in and out of possession. (4/10)

Attack

Nikica Jelavic: It was an extremely difficult afternoon for Jelavic, who cut a forlorn figure. To his credit, the Croatian worked extremely hard and did have one good downward header saved after the restart. (6/10)

Substitutes

Sone Aluko: The winger was one of the few bright sparks for Hull. As demanded by his manager, he worked hard defensively and then looked to get forward whenever he could. (7/10)

Stephen Quinn: Brought on to work hard and limit the damage during the closing stages. The Irishman did just that. (6/10)

David Meyler: Similar to his countryman Quinn in that he was introduced into the action to provide some fresh legs to what was a toiling midfield unit. (6/10)