There's no doubt why Arsenal are now many people's favorites to secure the Premier League this season.
Look at their outcomes against Fulham and Crystal Palace compared to those identical matches in the previous campaign.
The Gunners have beaten all of them in the current season, but surrendered 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race last season.
Defensive Strength
Arsenal's defensive strength is a crucial element why they are seeming ready to finally fulfil their title goal.
They stand first for shutouts (6), shots let in (3), shots faced (72), quality opportunities against (19) and expected goals against (5.3).
The center-back duo of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the best in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Dead-Ball Superiority
Their danger from dead balls is highly documented, but competing clubs still find it difficult to stop the Gunners from these chances.
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 perform multiple roles now. The whole team has a fear factor. People are just wary of them and it is excellent to see."
Title Potential
What is even more notable about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also faced Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United at opposition grounds and Manchester City at home - 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 juncture 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 search of that long-awaited first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far paid off in impressive fashion, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and boasting the tightest defense, despite several injuries.
- Unbreached games in three straight Premier League games
- Over six hours without allowing a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across various contests
Former players and analysts have labeled Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now functioning with belief and resolve.
