It's evident why Arsenal stand as countless pundits' favorites to claim the Premier League in the current campaign.
Consider their outcomes against West Ham and Crystal Palace compared to those identical matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have overcome all of them this time around, but lost 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race previously.
Defensive Dominance
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a key reason why they are appearing strong to at last realize their title ambition.
They stand first for shutouts (6), goals allowed (3), shots faced (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the best in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their effectiveness from free kicks is widely recognized, but competing clubs still don't know how to neutralize 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 resulting 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 wonderful to see."
Championship Claims
What is especially notable about Arsenal's start to the campaign is they have also played Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United away from home and Manchester City in their own stadium - and are still four points clear at the top.
While they maintain victories, 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 pressure was on boss Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in search of that coveted first title since 2004.
But the business has so far yielded results in style, with his side second top scorers in the league and having the strongest defense, despite several injuries.
- Shutouts in three straight Premier League games
- Over six hours without conceding a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across various contests
Former players and pundits have characterized Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now operating with conviction and determination.
