It's obvious why Arsenal stand as countless pundits' favorites to secure the Premier League during this term.
Examine their performances against West Ham and Crystal Palace compared to those identical matches last season.
The Gunners have defeated all of them in the current season, but surrendered 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race last season.
Defensive Dominance
Arsenal's backline resilience is a crucial element why they are appearing strong to at last realize their title goal.
They lead the league for shutouts (6), goals conceded (3), shots faced (72), shots on target faced (19) and xGA (5.3).
The center-back duo of Gabriel and William Saliba is possibly the best in the league, with Arsenal maintaining a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their danger from dead balls is widely recognized, but competing clubs still don't know how to contain the Gunners from these situations.
They have registered 11 times from set-pieces in the league, a couple extra 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 Claims
What is especially impressive about Arsenal's beginning to the campaign is they have also encountered Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United on the road and Manchester City on home turf - and are still leading by four at the top.
While they maintain victories, their traditional rivals are struggling. This marks the initial occasion 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 spent around £250m on eight summer acquisitions in search of that elusive first title since 2004.
But the business has so far yielded results in style, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and having the tightest defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Unbreached games in three consecutive Premier League games
- Nearly 6.5 hours without allowing a goal
- Only three goals in 12 games across every tournament
Former players and analysts have described Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now operating with belief and resolve.
