There's little doubt why Arsenal are now numerous fans' preferred choice to win the Premier League during this term.
Consider their outcomes against West Ham and Crystal Palace compared to those equivalent matches during the prior term.
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 previously.
Impenetrable Defense
Arsenal's defensive strength is a crucial element why they are appearing strong to finally fulfil their title target.
They lead the league for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), opposition efforts (72), shots on target faced (19) and expected goals against (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is possibly the finest 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 well known, but opposition teams still struggle to stop the Gunners from these chances.
They have notched 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 excel in various aspects now. The whole team has a fear factor. People are just fearful of them and it is great to see."
Title Claims
What is particularly impressive about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also faced Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United at opposition grounds and Manchester City in their own stadium - and are still ahead by four points at the top.
While they maintain victories, their long-standing opponents aren't faring so well. 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 head coach Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having invested around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in pursuit of that long-awaited first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far yielded results in impressive fashion, with his side second top scorers in the league and possessing the tightest defense, despite several injuries.
- Shutouts in three consecutive Premier League games
- 385 minutes without conceding a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across various contests
Former players and experts have labeled Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now performing with confidence and purpose.
