Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has hailed the standard of this season's Premier League.
Ferguson is adamant the league is getting stronger.
"It is a strange Premier League this season," he said. "We have to give credit to the lower parts of the league who are now catching up and condensing it into a much tighter competition.
"The table is like we are used to seeing in the Championship every year where you win two games and you are challenging for the play-off spots.
"Only a few weeks ago Sunderland were down the bottom. Now they are challenging for a European place.
"That is the kind of league we are in at the moment.
"It is difficult to assess whether it is the teams at the top who are failing or the one below them getting better.
"I think it is the lower teams getting better because the standard has improved."
