It's evident why Arsenal stand as countless pundits' preferred choice to secure the Premier League in the current campaign.
Look at their results against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those identical matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have overcome 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.
Defensive Prowess
Arsenal's backline resilience is a crucial element why they are looking well positioned to at last realize their title ambition.
They rank top for unbreached games (6), shots let in (3), opposition efforts (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the strongest in the league, with Arsenal maintaining a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Proficiency
Their threat from set-pieces is widely recognized, but rival sides still find it difficult to stop 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 excel in various aspects now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just wary of them and it is great to see."
Championship Pedigree
What is especially notable about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also played Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United away from home and Manchester City at home - and are still four points clear at the top.
While they keep winning, their historic competitors face difficulties. This marks the premier instance 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 pressure was on head coach Mikel Arteta at the outset, having invested around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in search of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the business has so far paid off in style, with his side second top scorers in the league and boasting the tightest defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Clean sheets in each of their last three Premier League games
- Over six hours without allowing a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across various contests
Former players and pundits have characterized Arteta's men as a "powerhouse, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now operating with belief and determination.
