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There's little doubt why Arsenal are now many people's preferred choice to win the Premier League this season.

Consider their performances against Newcastle and Crystal Palace versus those same matches during the prior term.

The Gunners have defeated all of them during this campaign, but lost 10 points across those games as they faded in the title race last season.

Impenetrable Backline

Arsenal's backline resilience is a primary factor why they are appearing strong to finally fulfil their title target.

They stand first for unbreached games (6), goals allowed (3), shots faced (72), quality opportunities against (19) and expected goals against (5.3).

The center-back duo 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.

Dead-Ball Superiority

Their threat from set-pieces is widely recognized, but rival sides still don't know how to stop the Gunners from these chances.

They have registered 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 excel in various aspects now. The whole team has a intimidation presence. People are just fearful of them and it is excellent to see."

Championship Claims

What is particularly notable about Arsenal's beginning to the campaign is they have also encountered Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle United at opposition grounds and Manchester City in their own stadium - and are still four points clear at the top.

While they keep winning, their historic competitors aren't faring so well. 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 scrutiny was on boss Mikel Arteta at the start, having allocated around £250m on eight summer additions in quest of that elusive first title since 2004.

But the business has so far paid off in remarkable manner, with his side second top scorers in the league and possessing the tightest defense, despite numerous injuries.

• Shutouts in each of their last three Premier League games
• Over six hours without conceding a goal
• Only three goals in 12 games across all competitions

Former players and pundits have labeled Arteta's men as a "juggernaut, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now operating with confidence and determination.