Paul Ince says West Ham are proving that they were never a one-man team with Declan Rice with the superb form they have shown at the start of the new season.

The Hammers sold midfielder and captain Rice to Arsenal this summer for £105million, with question marks raised over how David Moyes and the club's hierarchy would go about replacing such a key cog in their team.

But if West Ham's start to the season is anything to go by, they've clearly done a good job. The Irons are fourth in the Premier League and are one of four sides, along with Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, with ten points from the first four games.

The fixture list hasn't exactly been kind, either. Two of West Ham's wins this season have come against Chelsea and Brighton, with the latter seeing the club get their first top-flight victory over the Seagulls in 13 attempts.

Summer signing James Ward-Prowse has thrived in midfield, while Mexico international Edson Alvarez is also beginning to find his feet in claret and blue following his £35million move from Ajax.

Mohammed Kudus, also signed from Ajax this summer, will no doubt bring even more quality to Moyes' midfield, though competition for places will be difficult given how many players are performing right now.

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Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta and Michail Antonio have all hit the ground running for the new campaign and it's clear to Ince, who came through West Ham's academy and played 95 times for them before joining Manchester United in 1989, that Rice wasn't as instrumental to the club's success as many thought.

"It was never all on Declan Rice," he told LuckyBlock.com. "Maybe for some it was, but not me. West Ham was not Declan Rice, there were 10 other players on the pitch.

"If you're going in every day and all anyone talks about is Declan then it will affect you as a player. Whenever a key player leaves, like Declan has, you have to come together and, without being disrespectful, show that they don't need him."

Ince was also full of praise for Moyes, who he thinks would have been a success at Manchester United had he been given time in the job rather than getting the sack after nine months in the job.

"People have always doubted Moyes and claimed he's too old school, but sometimes you need that," added Ince. "Credit to the board for sticking by him. That's the type of owners you want. Moyes is a great manager and I still believe, had he been given the time, he'd have been a success at Man United too."

"It's [also] been a blessing to have kept hold of Jarrod Bowen. They've started great and it just goes to show that some owners are too trigger-happy. I'm pleased the West Ham board kept hold of Moysey."