Chelsea's Michael Ballack believes the Premier League title race will come down to a battle between his side and defending champions Manchester United, according to reports on Monday.
Liverpool and Chelsea are joint top of the table, but the Germany midfielder suggested they are a better side in European competition, reported dpa.
"It's always the big four that everyone speaks about but I think it's still about Chelsea and Man U, " Ballack was quoted as saying in The Sun.
"Arsenal are already behind which makes it very difficult for them.
"Liverpool are very good at this moment but for me they are always a club for the Champions League, partly because they can put all their focus on one or two matches.
"But when you look at results and squads over the past couple of seasons as a whole, I think us and Man U are just a little bit stronger."
United trail the leading duo by eight points in the league, with Arsenal 10 points off the pace in fifth place. Ballack's statement came despite Liverpool's 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge a month ago which marked Chelsea's first home defeat in more than four years.