There's no doubt why Arsenal stand as many people's favorites to win the Premier League in the current campaign.
Consider their outcomes against West Ham and Crystal Palace compared to those same matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have defeated all of them in the current season, but lost 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race last season.
Defensive Strength
Arsenal's defensive strength is a primary factor why they are appearing strong to finally fulfil their title ambition.
They stand first for unbreached games (6), shots let in (3), attempts against (72), shots on target faced (19) and expected goals against (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the finest in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Dead-Ball Dominance
Their danger from dead balls is highly documented, but competing clubs still struggle to contain the Gunners from these opportunities.
They have registered 11 times from set-pieces in the league, a couple extra 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."
Championship Claims
What is even more remarkable about Arsenal's start 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 leading by four at the top.
While they maintain victories, their historic competitors aren't faring so well. 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 expectations was on manager Mikel Arteta at the start, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in search of that coveted first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far yielded results in style, with his side second top scorers in the league and boasting the most resilient defense, despite several injuries.
- Unbreached games in each of their last three Premier League games
- Over six hours without conceding a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and experts have characterized Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now performing with belief and resolve.
