Darren Fletcher has said that the Premier League standard has risen in the past years. Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher has attributed the Premier League's top teams imperfect start to the season to the strength of the league's smaller clubs.

United are third in the league with 25 points from 13 games, having drawn their home encounter with West Bromwich Albion, a team that defeated Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in September. Meanwhile, league leaders Chelsea have suffered three defeats already, with their only home loss coming in a resounding 3–0 defeat to Sunderland on 14 November.

"The standard in the Premier League has risen and teams are getting better," Darren Fletcher commented on United's official website. "As we experienced last season it's a tough league and I think you’ll see a lot more points dropped than in previous seasons."