🔗 Share this article 'People are afraid' - why 'powerhouse' Arsenal have become the team to beat. Gabriel Magalhaes rejoices Arsenal's victory over Crystal Palace There's little doubt why Arsenal have become countless pundits' favorites to secure the Premier League in the current campaign. Examine their outcomes against Fulham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those same matches in the previous campaign. The Gunners have overcome all of them in the current season, but surrendered 10 points across those games as they fell away in the title race in the prior campaign. Impenetrable Defense Arsenal's backline resilience is a key reason why they are appearing strong to ultimately achieve their title ambition. They rank top for unbreached games (6), goals conceded (3), attempts against (72), shots on target faced (19) and expected goals against (5.3). The central defensive pairing of Gabriel and William Saliba is arguably the strongest 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 widely recognized, but rival sides still struggle to stop the Gunners from these chances. They have notched 11 times from set-pieces in the league, a couple extra than any other side, with 69% of their goals originating from these situations. "Arsenal can perform multiple roles now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just afraid of them and it is wonderful to see." Title Credentials What is even more remarkable about Arsenal's commencement to the campaign is they have also faced Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United away from home and Manchester City in their own stadium - 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 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 boss Mikel Arteta at the outset, having spent around £250m on eight summer additions in pursuit of that long-awaited first title since 2004. But the spending has so far proven successful in remarkable manner, with his side second top scorers in the league and having the strongest defense, despite numerous injuries. Clean sheets in three straight Premier League games Over six hours without conceding a goal Only three goals in 12 games across various contests Former players and analysts have characterized Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking hard to stop" with the whole club now performing with conviction and purpose.