Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp is not surprised Chelsea and Tottenham are among the cream of the crop in the Premier League following the first nine games.
Spurs are currently top of the table, goal difference ahead of reigning champions Liverpool, while Chelsea are two points behind in third ahead of their date with Jose Mourinho's men this weekend.
The early stages of the season have indicated a much closer Premier League season this time around, results suggesting Liverpool won't be running away with the title as they did last time around.
The level of competitiveness has surprised some, but Liverpool boss Klopp says he expected he and his side's title defence to be more complicated than when they claimed their first title since the reformatting of the top tier.
"There’s a lot of quality in these squads and with the managers," he said in his pre-match press conference. "A lot of good work is done on the training ground.
"They all played so far a really good season. I’m not surprised that Tottenham or Chelsea are where they are.
"Southampton look really, really good too and we know how good Leicester are. It’s a sign that the teams are close together this year.
"It’s a very difficult but interesting season for everybody. There’s chances there for all the teams and it’s nothing to do with what you achieved last year.
"You have to be ready for that because it’s really tough for all of us. But I’m not surprised."
Liverpool take on Spurs in mid-December in what will be a key test for Mourinho's men and their title credentials.
The current champions beat Chelsea earlier in the season but Lampard's have clicked since, now on a run of 13 games unbeaten across all competitions, closing the gap on Spurs and Liverpool to just two points ahead of the busy winter period.
