There's little doubt why Arsenal are now many people's favorites to win 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 beaten all of them this time around, but dropped 10 points across those games as they dropped off in the title race last season.
Defensive Dominance
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a crucial element why they are appearing strong to at last realize their title target.
They rank top for unbreached games (6), goals allowed (3), attempts against (72), shots on target faced (19) and anticipated concessions (5.3).
The defensive partnership of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the best in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their threat from set-pieces is widely recognized, but opposition teams still struggle to neutralize the Gunners from these situations.
They have notched 11 times from set-pieces in the league, two more than any other side, with 69% of their goals resulting from these situations.
"Arsenal can do a bit of everything now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just fearful of them and it is excellent to see."
Championship Credentials
What is even more remarkable about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also encountered 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 continue triumphing, their traditional rivals aren't faring so well. This marks the first time 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 manager Mikel Arteta at the start, having spent around £250m on eight summer additions in pursuit of that elusive 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 tightest defense, despite numerous injuries.
- Clean sheets in three consecutive Premier League games
- Over six hours without allowing a goal
- Only a trio of goals in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and analysts have described Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now performing with conviction and resolve.
