The evidence is unmistakable why Arsenal have become many people's top picks to win the Premier League this season.
Consider their results against Fulham and Crystal Palace compared to those identical matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have beaten all of them in the current season, but dropped 10 points across those games as they dropped off in the title race in the prior campaign.
Defensive Strength
Arsenal's backline resilience is a key reason why they are looking well positioned to ultimately achieve their title goal.
They lead the league for unbreached games (6), goals allowed (3), attempts against (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the strongest in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their threat from set-pieces is widely recognized, but competing clubs still struggle to neutralize the Gunners from these opportunities.
They have scored 11 times from set-pieces in the league, a couple extra than any other side, with 69% of their goals coming from these situations.
"Arsenal can do a bit of everything now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just wary of them and it is wonderful to see."
Title Claims
What is particularly impressive about Arsenal's commencement 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 keep winning, their long-standing opponents face difficulties. This marks the premier instance at this juncture of the season since 1992 that none of Manchester City and United, Liverpool or Chelsea are in the Premier League top four.
The expectations was on manager Mikel Arteta at the start, having invested around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in pursuit of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the business has so far proven successful in style, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and possessing the strongest defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Shutouts in each of their last three Premier League games
- 385 minutes without conceding a goal
- Only three goals in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and experts have described Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now operating with belief and determination.
