Joe Cole believes that Lille are the best side in France despite sitting in third place in the league table.

The attacking midfielder is currently on a one-year loan at the reigning French champions from Liverpool.

The Englishman has yet to taste defeat in Ligue 1 and that record was preserved with a 0-0 draw against Paris Saint-Germain. However, Cole feels Lille are more than a match for any team in the league.

"I feel we are the best team in the league," he told Ligue 1's official website.

"I wouldn't say that unless I believed it, but the truth is that we are two points behind at the moment and so we have a lot of work to do but I think we are the best team in the league.

"But we have to go and prove that. We have put ourselves out there, we are the champions from last year and we want to go and do that again."

Cole has scored two goals in 14 appearances for Lille since joining in summer.