West Ham United boss Manuel Pellegrini was left to lament his side's poor display in Sunday's 4-0 loss to Liverpool.

The Hammers fielded five debutants at Anfield but Pellegrini wasn't using it as an excuse for the heavy defeat.

He told Sky Sports: "We need to improve. We didn't play well, we didn't create too many chances apart from the first 15 minutes of the second half. So we need to continue working.

"I must be clear, we need to improve and need to play better. Liverpool deserved to win.

"Of course we are absolutely positive, we are not going to crush that optimism. It is the first game of the season, we have nine new players, we play against one of the best, if not the best, teams in the league.

"We are not happy, we don't want to lose 4-0, but we are sure we are in the correct way and will continue working."