It's clear why Arsenal stand as numerous fans' favorites to claim the Premier League during this term.
Look at their results against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those identical matches during the prior term.
The Gunners have defeated all of them this time around, but dropped 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Backline
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a crucial element why they are looking well positioned to at last realize their title ambition.
They stand first for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), opposition efforts (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is possibly the strongest in the league, with Arsenal recording a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Dead-Ball Excellence
Their effectiveness from free kicks is widely recognized, but competing clubs still don't know how to stop the Gunners from these situations.
They have scored 11 times from set-pieces in the league, two more than any other side, with 69% of their goals resulting from these situations.
"Arsenal can perform multiple roles now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just wary of them and it is wonderful to see."
Title Claims
What is especially impressive about Arsenal's beginning to the campaign is they have also played Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United at opposition grounds and Manchester City in their own stadium - and are still leading by four at the top.
While they maintain victories, their long-standing opponents aren't faring so well. This marks the initial occasion at this point of the season since 1992 that none of Manchester City and United, Liverpool or Chelsea are in the Premier League top four.
The scrutiny was on boss Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in quest of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far paid off in impressive fashion, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and possessing the tightest defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Unbreached games in three consecutive Premier League games
- Nearly 6.5 hours without conceding a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and pundits have described Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now performing with belief and determination.
