The evidence is undeniable why Arsenal have become many people's top picks to win the Premier League in the current campaign.
Look at their results against Fulham and Crystal Palace versus those identical matches last season.
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.
Defensive Prowess
Arsenal's backline resilience is a crucial element why they are seeming ready to finally fulfil their title goal.
They lead the league for clean sheets (6), shots let in (3), opposition efforts (72), quality opportunities against (19) and expected goals against (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the finest in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Expertise
Their effectiveness from free kicks is widely recognized, but opposition teams still don't know how to stop the Gunners from these situations.
They have scored 11 times from set-pieces in the league, several additional 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 wonderful to see."
Title Claims
What is even more notable about Arsenal's start to the campaign is they have also played Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United at opposition grounds and Manchester City on home turf - and are still ahead by four points at the top.
While they continue triumphing, their historic competitors aren't faring so well. This marks the initial occasion 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 boss Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having allocated around £250m on eight summer additions in pursuit of that long-awaited first title since 2004.
But the investment has so far yielded results in style, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and possessing the strongest defense, despite several injuries.
- Unbreached games in three straight Premier League games
- Over six hours without conceding a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and experts have characterized Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now performing with confidence and determination.
