ARSENAL are favourites to win the Premier League title this season.
And the main reason for that is their airtight defence.
The Gunners kept their fifth consecutive clean sheet in all competitions when they beat Crystal Palace 1-0 at the Emirates on Sunday.
Not only are Mikel Arteta’s side yet to concede a goal this October, they have restricted their opponents to two shots on target across the last four games.
With every top flight side having played nine league games, the campaign is now a quarter complete and Arsenal have conceded just three goals.
They are on course to break the Premier League record of fewest goals conceded (15), set by Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2004/05.
Needless to say, this defensive might has translated to Dream Team success.
At the time of writing, Gabriel (£5.5m) and Jurrien Timber (£5.3m) are ranked second and third among all players on 106 and 105 points respectively.
Only runaway leader Erling Haaland (£8m) has amassed more points (148) at this stage.
Riccardo Calafiori (£4.2m) and William Saliba (£5.4m) also feature in the top ten defenders while David Raya (£4.9m) is second among goalkeepers, just one point shy of Nick Pope (£4.4m).
The substantial returns provided by Arsenal defensive assets are forcing Dream Team managers to reevaluate their approach.
How many Arsenal defenders is enough?
Gabriel and Timber cost £10.8m between them at this moment in time but their combined total of 211 points suggests it’s money well spent.
Some gaffers may feel it’s worth combining Raya, Gabriel, Timber and Calafiori as a formidable quartet.
This single-minded approach may seem extreme but it’s a tempting strategy given the upcoming schedule.
Arsenal have another double header in Gameweek 10, a favourable one at that: Burnley (a) and Slavia Prague (a).
The Clarets rank bottom of the Premier League for shots taken and xG while the Czech side have failed to win any of their first three Champions League fixtures this season having scored just two goals in the competition.
Nothing is ever guaranteed in Dream Team but Arsenal’s chances of at least one clean sheet in Gameweek 10 are sky high.
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As a broader point, four of the top five performers in Dream Team are defenders currently, with Haaland being the only exception.
Investing budget into premium defenders is perfectly viable this season and there’s doubt Arsenal should be the first port of call.
Dream Team in association with Midnite
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