The evidence is unmistakable why Arsenal have become countless pundits' preferred choice to claim the Premier League in the current campaign.
Examine their outcomes against Fulham and Crystal Palace versus those identical matches during the prior term.
The Gunners have overcome all of them in the current season, but dropped 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Defense
Arsenal's defensive strength is a key reason why they are looking well positioned to finally fulfil their title goal.
They lead the league for shutouts (6), goals conceded (3), attempts against (72), shots on target faced (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is possibly the strongest in the league, with Arsenal maintaining a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Dead-Ball Excellence
Their effectiveness from free kicks is widely recognized, but opposition teams still don't know how to stop the Gunners from these opportunities.
They have scored 11 times from set-pieces in the league, several additional than any other side, with 69% of their goals coming from these situations.
"Arsenal can do a bit of everything now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just afraid of them and it is wonderful to see."
Title Credentials
What is especially remarkable about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also encountered Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United on the road and Manchester City at home - and are still four points clear 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 expectations was on manager Mikel Arteta at the start, having allocated around £250m on eight summer signings in search of that long-awaited 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 boasting the tightest defense, despite several injuries.
- Clean sheets in each of their last three Premier League games
- Nearly 6.5 hours without allowing a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across all competitions
Former players and analysts have labeled Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now operating with conviction and resolve.
