There's no doubt why Arsenal are now many people's favorites to win the Premier League in the current campaign.
Consider their results against West Ham and Crystal Palace versus those same matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have overcome all of them during this campaign, but dropped 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race in the prior campaign.
Defensive Prowess
Arsenal's defensive strength is a key reason why they are looking well positioned to finally fulfil their title goal.
They lead the league for unbreached games (6), shots let in (3), attempts against (72), shots on target faced (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the finest in the league, with Arsenal recording a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their effectiveness from free kicks is well known, but opposition teams still don't know how to neutralize the Gunners from these chances.
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 afraid of them and it is excellent to see."
Title Claims
What is particularly notable 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 four points clear at the top.
While they maintain victories, their long-standing opponents face difficulties. This marks the first time at this stage of the season since 1992 that none of Manchester City and United, Liverpool or Chelsea are in the Premier League top four.
The pressure was on manager Mikel Arteta at the outset, having spent around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in pursuit of that coveted 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.
- Clean sheets in each of their last three Premier League games
- Nearly 6.5 hours without allowing a goal
- Only three goals in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and analysts have labeled Arteta's men as a "powerhouse, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now operating with confidence and determination.
