It's obvious why Arsenal are now many people's favorites to claim the Premier League during this term.
Look at their results against Newcastle and Crystal Palace versus those identical matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have overcome all of them this time around, but surrendered 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Backline
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a crucial element why they are appearing strong to at last realize their title target.
They lead the league for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), attempts against (72), dangerous chances allowed (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing 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.
Dead-Ball Excellence
Their effectiveness from free kicks is highly documented, but opposition teams still don't know how to contain the Gunners from these situations.
They have scored 11 times from set-pieces in the league, two more 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 fear factor. People are just fearful of them and it is wonderful to see."
Title Credentials
What is particularly impressive about Arsenal's beginning to the campaign is they have also played Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United away from home and Manchester City on home turf - and are still ahead by four points at the top.
While they maintain victories, 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 expectations was on head coach Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having invested around £250m on eight summer signings in pursuit of that long-awaited first title since 2004.
But the investment has so far proven successful in style, with his side second top scorers in the league and possessing the most resilient defense, despite several injuries.
- Unbreached games in three consecutive Premier League games
- Nearly 6.5 hours without conceding a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and pundits have described Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now functioning with conviction and resolve.
