It's clear why Arsenal stand as numerous fans' preferred choice to claim the Premier League in the current campaign.
Look at their results against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those same matches during the prior term.
The Gunners have beaten all of them during this campaign, but lost 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Backline
Arsenal's defensive strength is a crucial element why they are seeming ready to finally fulfil their title target.
They rank top for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), shots faced (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the best in the league, with Arsenal recording a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Proficiency
Their danger from dead balls is well known, but rival sides still find it difficult to neutralize the Gunners from these opportunities.
They have registered 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 fear factor. People are just wary of them and it is great to see."
Title Credentials
What is particularly remarkable about Arsenal's beginning to the campaign is they have also faced Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United on the road and Manchester City in their own stadium - and are still ahead by four points at the top.
While they continue triumphing, their traditional rivals aren't faring so well. 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 scrutiny was on boss Mikel Arteta at the outset, having allocated around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in pursuit of that long-awaited first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far proven successful in impressive fashion, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and possessing the most resilient defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Clean sheets in three consecutive Premier League games
- 385 minutes without conceding a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and pundits have labeled Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now performing with conviction and purpose.
