'People are afraid' - why 'powerhouse' Arsenal are the squad everyone fears.

It's clear why Arsenal stand as many people's top picks to claim the Premier League this season.

Look at their outcomes against West Ham and Crystal Palace in contrast with those identical matches last season.

The Gunners have beaten all of them this time around, but dropped 10 points across those games as they dropped off in the title race previously.

Impenetrable Rearguard

Arsenal's defensive solidity is a key reason why they are looking well positioned to finally fulfil their title goal.

They rank top for unbreached games (6), goals allowed (3), opposition efforts (72), quality opportunities against (19) and anticipated concessions (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.

Dead-Ball Dominance

Their effectiveness from free kicks is widely recognized, but competing clubs 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 resulting from these situations.

"Arsenal can do a bit of everything now. The whole team has a fear factor. People are just fearful of them and it is wonderful to see."

Championship Credentials

What is especially notable 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 continue triumphing, their long-standing opponents aren't faring so well. This marks the premier instance at this point 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 beginning, having invested around £250m on eight summer signings in quest of that elusive first title since 2004.

But the spending has so far paid off in style, with his side second top scorers in the league and boasting the strongest defense, despite several injuries.

• Clean sheets in three consecutive Premier League games
• Over six hours without letting in a goal
• Only three goals in 12 games across every tournament

Former players and pundits have described Arteta's men as a "unstoppable force, looking difficult to stop" with the whole club now operating with conviction and determination.