It's clear why Arsenal stand as countless pundits' preferred choice to secure the Premier League in the current campaign.
Consider their performances against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those equivalent matches during the prior term.
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 previously.
Impenetrable Backline
Arsenal's backline resilience is a key reason why they are looking well positioned to finally fulfil their title target.
They stand first for clean sheets (6), goals allowed (3), opposition efforts (72), quality opportunities against (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the strongest in the league, with Arsenal recording a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Dead-Ball Excellence
Their threat from set-pieces is well known, but competing clubs still find it difficult to stop 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 perform multiple roles now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just afraid of them and it is excellent to see."
Championship Pedigree
What is especially impressive about Arsenal's beginning 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 leading by four at the top.
While they continue triumphing, their long-standing opponents face difficulties. 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 head coach Mikel Arteta at the start, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in search of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the spending has so far yielded results in remarkable manner, with his side one of the most prolific attacks in the league and boasting the most resilient defense, despite several injuries.
- Unbreached games in three consecutive Premier League games
- 385 minutes without allowing a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and analysts have labeled Arteta's men as a "powerhouse, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now performing with confidence and purpose.
