Manchester City may have struck three past Fulham, but Fabian Delph insists the champions need to be even more ruthless.

Pep Guardiola’s swashbuckling side hit the ground running after the international break, with Leroy Sane marking his first Premier League start of the season with a goal within two minutes.

David Silva added another before Raheem Sterling wrapped up a deserved 3-0 win against promoted Fulham, who will have been relieved to see City take their foot off the gas in the second half.

Manchester City eased to victory against the Premier League newboys
Manchester City eased to victory against the Premier League newboys (Martin Rickett/PA)

The drop off in intensity got under Delph’s skin, with the left-back frustrated by their inability to net even more on his first club appearance of the campaign.

“It’s nice to get going again after the World Cup – we only got 12 days off,” the England international said.

“I’ve been working to get fit and get up to speed, and after 70 minutes today I’m on track to getting back to full fitness.

“I felt like I won most of my duels and I was communicating well with the rest of the team.

“I couldn’t get my feet sorted at times but that will come with more match time and fitness.

Fabian Delph made his first club appearance of the season
Fabian Delph made his first club appearance of the season (Martin Rickett/PA)

“It was frustrating to not put more chances into the back of the net – we need to be more ruthless.

“We knew Fulham could be a threat – they have been impressive already this season.

“But we started with the mindset that we needed to be on the front foot. We try to do that in every game.”

Delph will be hoping that a solid display against the west Londoners will see him get another chance against Lyon in Wednesday’s Champions League opener.

Bernardo Silva staked his claim for a place even more emphatically, earning the man-of-the-match award after pulling the strings with aplomb on Saturday.

“Bernardo Silva? Ah, he’s average. One of the worst players in the team…” Delph told the club’s official website with a smile.

“Nah, he’s a team player, a wonderful guy, everyone loves him. He looks about 45 but he’s only about 20 or something.

“He’ll keep improving, there are many more good games to come from him.”

Bernardo Silva formed part of a frightening City attack that gave Fulham a torrid time for large periods.

Yet there were some decent displays from the visitors, including 18-year-old Ryan Sessegnon at left-back.

Ryan Sessegnon returned to the Fulham team
Ryan Sessegnon returned to the Fulham team (Martin Rickett/PA)

Asked how much Sessegnon will benefit from playing at the Premier League champions, Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic said: “Huge. It is a huge benefit for this kind of player.

“I am the opinion about this player being part of the national team for the World Cup.

“He has handled games in the Championship and now it is time to play games in these places.

“The benefits is huge and he is not a small kid and part of his profession is win, draw and lose the game.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t do a surprise today and if I analyse the game, Ryan played a good game and I believe it is good for him and for his development and for his experience.”