Brighton kicked off their new Premier League campaign in emphatic fashion by thrashing Europa League winners Aston Villa 4-0 at Amex Stadium.

It only took the Seagulls eight minutes to take the lead as Maxim de Cuyper forced an own goal out of Victor Lindelof before the Belgian added his name to the scoresheet 10 minutes later with an easy finish to make it 2-0.

Villa crumbled as Jack Hinshelwood then struck two goals in as many minutes to put Brighton 4-0 up, before the visitors were reduced to 10 men following a red card for Joao Gomes, who lasted only 40 minutes on a nightmare debut.

Unai Emery's side capitulated completely after a promising start.

Emiliano Buendia almost gave the visitors the lead inside five minutes after he stole possession in the final third but missed the bottom corner by inches.

Brighton, however, capitalised on the first chance that came their way as Villa defender Pau Torres' blind pass into his own box found De Cuyper, whose shot struck the post before going in off Lindelof.

Georginio Rutter then made a well-timed run to get behind the Villa defence and cut back for De Cuyper to turn home from six yards to double his side's lead.

Fabian Hurzeler's side were 3-0 up at the half-hour mark as De Cuyper's cross from the left was knocked back across the goal by Diego Gomez for Hinshelwood to tap in.

Only a minute later, Yasin Ayari robbed Gomes of possession in the Villa box and Hinshelwood made no mistake to grab his second goal of the game.

Villa's afternoon went from bad to worse before the eventful half came to a close as Joao Gomes, already on a yellow card, kicked out at Rutter and received a straight red following a video assistant referee (VAR) review.

Though Villa managed to keep Brighton at bay in the second half, the damage had long been done to Emery's side.

"Silence," said Emery when asked pre-match about Ollie Watkins' absence from the Villa squad.

But the noise surrounding the club is only bound to grow louder after their horror show in Brighton.

Watkins looks likely to be the latest to leave Villa this summer with the England striker linked with a move to Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal.

Goalkeeper Emi Martinez's future also remain uncertain following a failed move to Juventus and the arrival of Japan's Zion Suzuki.

It lays bare the task Emery has to replicate last season's success, having also lost Youri Tielemans, Morgan Rogers, Lucas Digne and Ezri Konsa this summer - all core members of the group.

Even then, the manner of the defeat in the league opener hints Emery's problems this season could run far deeper.

Gomes recovered from an injury in time to start the opener but the midfielder, signed from Wolves for £38m, put in a display that could contend for one of the worst debuts.

The Brazilian was cautioned for waving an imaginary card at the referee, gave away the ball in the box for Brighton's fourth goal and was then sent off for kicking out at Rutter.

After securing fourth place in the Premier League and then winning the Europa League last season, Villa were always going to face a challenge to match those heights.

But this opening display will raise questions whether Emery's side could be heading in the opposite direction.

Brighton, meanwhile, could not have asked for a better start to the new season.

Like Villa, they have also lost key personnel during the transfer window in defender Jan Paul van Hecke and season striker Danny Welbeck, with midfielder Carlos Baleba likely to join them in leaving soon.

Yet, Hurzeler was still able to field a side that looked far closer to Brighton's first-choice line-up than the one Emery could.

Club-record signing Luka Vuskovic started at centre-back on his Premier League debut and produced an assured display while goals from De Cuyper and Hinshelwood would be a welcome sight as they look to replace Welbeck's output.

Without a recognised striker, Rutter started up front and, despite not getting on the scoresheet, was central during Brighton's attacking spree in the first half.

Hurzeler and his players will have little time to savour their start as attention will turn to the Conference League play-off second leg against Norway's Tromso on Thursday, 27 August (19:30 BST), after a goalless draw last week.