Nine games played, three goals conceded. It makes for good reading for Mikel Arteta and the Arsenal faithful.
It's easy to forget for fans born after Arsene Wenger's revolution in north London but before the Frenchman's arrival in 1996, Arsenal were a team synonymous with defensive stability.
Supporters of other clubs continue to turn their nose up when their team strays into a style deemed "too defensive." However, the crowd at the Emirates has never lost its love of another narrow win clawed out of the cold, hard earth -- hence the favorite "1-0 to the Arsenal" chant.
After years of Pep Guardiola-led obsession with possession, the game seems to be coming back to Arsenal's traditions with matches increasingly decided by defensive solidity, a direct style of play and set-piece prowess.
It's within this tactical shift that Arsenal have a chance of becoming become the best defense to have ever graced the Premier League. More miserly, even than José Mourinho's famous Chelsea team that conceded just 15 times on their way to the title in 2004-05.
Fewest goals conceded in a Premier League season
Sunday's 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace was Arsenal's sixth clean sheet of the campaign and their fifth in a row in all competitions. All other 19 clubs in the Premier League have conceded at least twice as many goals as Arsenal this season.
Mourinho's Chelsea are widely considered the best defense we've seen in the top flight after Petr Cech picked the ball out of their net just 15 times on their way to the title.
Nine games into that season, Chelsea had conceded just once -- in a 2-1 win over Southampton on Matchweek 4 and they did not let in a second until their 11th game -- a 4-1 win over West Brom.
On current pace, Arsenal will end the season having let in 13 goals (12.7 technically). If the next seven months pan out that way, then it is inconceivable to think that Arteta's side won't be parading the Premier League trophy around the Emirates in May.
After all, titles are built on defensive solidity, aren't they? Well, yes, usually -- but not always.
Interestingly, five of the 10 best defenses in Premier League history weren't rewarded with the title. Arsenal conceded just 17 times in 1998-99 but fell one point short of Man United's treble winners despite Sir Alex Ferguson's side letting in 20 more goals and keeping 10 fewer clean sheets.
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Have Arsenal been lucky to concede so few?
While the table backs up the notion that Arsenal's defense has been superb this season, the underlying numbers show they should have perhaps conceded more than they have.
A look at their xGA -- the number of goals a team should expect to concede based off the quality of chances the opposition have created -- shows that Arsenal should have let in 5.3 goals during their first nine games, but a combination of David Raya and some wayward finishing has helped them overperform to date.
If we take that 5.3 xGA and extrapolate it over the course of a full season, Arsenal would have let in 22 goals (22.4 technically) which would put them equal third on the all-time list.