There's little doubt why Arsenal have become many people's favorites to win the Premier League this season.
Look at their performances against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those identical matches during the prior term.
The Gunners have beaten all of them during this campaign, but surrendered 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race last season.
Defensive Dominance
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a primary factor why they are seeming ready to ultimately achieve their title goal.
They stand first for shutouts (6), shots let in (3), opposition efforts (72), shots on target faced (19) and expected goals against (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is possibly the finest in the league, with Arsenal maintaining a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Proficiency
Their danger from dead balls is well known, but competing clubs still find it difficult to stop the Gunners from these chances.
They have notched 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 fearful of them and it is great to see."
Title Potential
What is particularly 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 on home turf - and are still ahead by four points at the top.
While they maintain victories, their long-standing opponents aren't faring so well. This marks the premier instance 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 pressure was on manager Mikel Arteta at the beginning, having invested 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 among the highest scorers in the league and having the strongest defense, despite numerous injuries.
- Unbreached games in each of their last three Premier League games
- Over six hours without allowing a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and experts have characterized Arteta's men as a "powerhouse, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now performing with conviction and determination.
