It's evident why Arsenal stand as many people's favorites to secure the Premier League during this term.
Consider their results against Newcastle and Crystal Palace compared to those equivalent matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have defeated all of them in the current season, but lost 10 points across those games as they dropped off in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Defense
Arsenal's backline resilience is a crucial element why they are seeming ready to at last realize their title goal.
They stand first for unbreached games (6), goals allowed (3), attempts against (72), quality opportunities against (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the strongest in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Expertise
Their threat from set-pieces is widely recognized, but rival sides still struggle to neutralize the Gunners from these chances.
They have registered 11 times from set-pieces in the league, a couple extra than any other side, with 69% of their goals originating from these situations.
"Arsenal can do a bit of everything now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just fearful of them and it is excellent to see."
Title Claims
What is especially impressive about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also encountered 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 continue triumphing, their long-standing opponents are struggling. This marks the first time 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 manager Mikel Arteta at the start, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in search of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far yielded results in remarkable manner, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and boasting the strongest defense, despite numerous injuries.
- Clean sheets in three straight Premier League games
- Over six hours without letting in a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and analysts have characterized Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now functioning with conviction and resolve.
