It's obvious why Arsenal are now numerous fans' top picks to claim the Premier League in the current campaign.
Examine their performances against West Ham and Crystal Palace compared to those identical matches last season.
The Gunners have overcome all of them during this campaign, but lost 10 points across those games as they dropped off in the title race in the prior campaign.
Impenetrable Backline
Arsenal's defensive solidity is a key reason why they are appearing strong to at last realize their title ambition.
They lead the league for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), shots faced (72), quality opportunities against (19) and xGA (5.3).
The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is potentially the finest in the league, with Arsenal keeping a clean sheet in six of their first nine games.
Set-Piece Mastery
Their danger from dead balls is well known, but competing clubs still find it difficult to neutralize 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 fear factor. People are just fearful of them and it is great to see."
Championship Pedigree
What is even more impressive about Arsenal's commencement 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 ahead by four points at the top.
While they maintain victories, their long-standing opponents are struggling. 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 expectations was on head coach Mikel Arteta at the beginning, 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 impressive fashion, with his side among the highest scorers in the league and possessing the most resilient defense, despite multiple injuries.
- Clean sheets in three consecutive Premier League games
- Over six hours without allowing a goal
- Only a handful of concessions in 12 games across various contests
Former players and pundits have described Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking challenging to stop" with the whole club now operating with confidence and determination.
